Swansea Sail Bridge was constructed in the year 2003 and spans across the River Tawe with a deck measuring 140m in length and it links up with the SA1 development. Supported by thick steel cabling and a 42m high steel mast it affords easy access to thousands of people to get from one end of Swansea Marina to the other with ease.
It’s a marvel of design, and it’s also a very sturdy construction. Able to withstand the high winds that occasionally blow up in this part of Swansea. It’s a curved footbridge and it has now become a landmark. This bridge is used daily by cyclists of all ages, and people out and about walking their dogs and others working and socializing in the bars and clubs in the area.
Swansea Sail Bridge
It was named the “Sail Bridge” by the WDA as part of a regeneration project for the Port Of Swansea. Designed and built to link up two areas of the marina, and breath new life into this part of South Wales. There is a thriving boating community around here. Which is absolutely normal considering that this is an area where people love to spend their time yachting.
And looking around at the businesses that have been built in recent years, and continue to prosper, it is testament that this project has been a huge success for the City Of Swansea.
In May 2012 the Swansea Sail Bridge was featured during the Olympic Torch Relay when the torch was carried across the bridge, and watched by many thousands of excited people of all ages and nationalities. The atmosphere was buzzing as you can imagine during this time. We have a video listed further down this page where you can watch the recording for yourself online.
The bridge cost £2.8 million or more to design and build and you can judge for yourself if you think this was money well spent and invested. Lot’s of people who live and work in this expanding marina development will say that it has been a great success. Because of how easy it is now to gain access to the SA1 Development Area in general and beyond.
Swansea Sail Bridge
It allows quick access to apartments, hotels, restaurants and nightlife establishments where people spend their time. This easy access wouldn’t be possible without the bridge, of course. So it’s a great time saver in that respect. Also the bridge does provide a great vantage point for taking nice pictures of the surrounding marina.
With the many boats, yachts and apartments here it is easy to snap off a few memorable pictures during a visit. Take a camera with you on your next visit to the Maritime Quarter.
Swansea Sail Bridge Olympic Torch Relay May 2012
The Flint & Neill Partnership were appointed for the project back in 2003 by the Welsh Development Agency. They project managed the works and supervised the entire construction. And various other companies were involved in bringing this bridge to its final completion.
It took 15 months from initial design concept right up to it’s completion, for this Swansea footbridge. The bridge and walkway itself took 12 weeks to erect and set in place. Built on reinforced concrete piles for supreme stability. The steel work was prefabricated which helped with the speed of construction.
To this day the bridge continues to provide easy access for everyone. It allows cyclists, fitness enthusiasts and people of all ages a quick way to access the other side of the Marina and will continue to do so for years to come.