Passerelle Éternelle

Québec City, Canada

UMRsu and Ville de Québec

This research project supports a close partnership between urban landscape designs, material innovation, and parametric design processes. The design solution addresses the parametric optimization of the form, materiality, and sustainability.

The footbridge is part of an urban strategy of Quebec City which aims for a major integration of central districts. In the lower part of Quebec City, Saint-Charles River historically constitutes a breaking point of urban continuity due to the priority given to automobile transit on the existing bridges. The urban analysis confirmed the decision of positioning the new pedestrian bridge in continuity with the 8th Avenue.

This new pedestrian link connects the heart of Limoilou district to the Pointe-aux-Lièvres Park and the Eco-district facing it. This new pedestrian continuity radically transforms the role of the Saint-Charles River and the parks that run its shores, creating a place of convergence for the inhabitants of the two districts.

The pedestrian bridge becomes a meeting place for the inhabitants of the two districts. The footbridge is also an opportunity to make the Saint-Charles river accessible. It offers real public spaces overreaching the water, which make it possible to launch canoes and Kayaks and to live by the water in any season.

The design of the footbridge is inspired by the covered bridges of Quebec’s northern landscapes. The internal structural trellis constitutes a point of reference for the parametric exploration of the UHPFRC structure. The footbridge can easily be crossed in any season thanks to the covered upper part. The accessibility is made efficient with the development of a self-deicing floor, specially made for this project, which eliminates the winter maintenance of the walkway.

The trellis of the UHPFRC structure is a reply to the play of forces that allows the balance of the bridge and to the opening onto the majestic landscapes of the Saint-Charles River. By reducing the middle of the footbridge, the trellis reveals the existing view on the promontory of the Upper Town of Quebec. This architectural, structural, and landscaping play gives the Passerelle Éternelle a role as a landmark in the urban landscape of downtown Quebec.

With S. Bernier-Lavigne, D. Conciatori and L. Sorelli