Land marking the urban foot bridge

By Arch. George Arabbu

There’s a way in which the pedestrian footbridge can be made to be a sustainable construction. Currently the footbridge is a single functional (well, if you add advertising you might get away with a dual functionality claim.) structure, which in my opinion, is highly under utilized.

The existing footbridge is mass of concrete thrown over the tarmac, closing the air gap between the kerb stones, in the hope that people are going to use it to cross the dangerous highways. Unfortunately people, unlike motor vehicles, don’t use fuel to maneuver. Ideally it is the vehicles which should be made to go up and over pedestrian routes in order that pedestrian and vehicular traffic is duly separated. But as it may be the footbridge is a more economical structure. So the question would be what will make people go up those concrete or steel hills?

One way or another there’s need to justify the continued construction of the footbridges. If they are not being utilized by pedestrians to cross the highway then the juice of billboards is not worth the squeeze. Fruitful use of the bridge lies in the proposal to make it a multi-functional structure.

Additional to pedestrian crossing and advertising billboards the footbridge can be robust enough to accommodate the following activities:- traffic control, small businesses, garbage collection points, recreation and general aesthetics in the cityscape.

A traffic monitoring device can be fit under the bridge’s deck, on the island between dual-carriage highways. The device can be fitted with communication equipment manned by qualified personnel who will in turn relay real-time information to relevant authorities for swift action. One just has to listen to local FM radios to understand how important traffic 411 has taken centre stage in the airwaves.

Further security can be beefed up on highways by introducing temporary police posts on location. Vehicle license plate recognition cameras, and traffic lights, emergency phone booths, wi-fi hotspot, directional digital map displays, among other components would make the footbridges intelligent ICT ready structures.

Hawkers thrive on the path of pedestrians. The directive to create a hawkers’ market out of the CBD can not be said to solve the problem of hawkers. Once you take the ‘free entrepreneurs’ into a market they cease to be that. We could start solving the hawking problem by accommodating the activity. Pedestrians need them and vise versa.

The spaces below the stairs (or ramp) can be made to house small businesses such as ‘ice-cream vendors, newspaper vendors, ‘simu ya jamii’, mama mbogas, candy shops, etc.

The footbridge’s deck can be made to be wider to allow more informal businesses on the side and still leave ample space at the central axis for pedestrians.

One of the things that make hawkers a pain in the neck of the city council, I believe, is the garbage they leave behind at close of business. And as if that wasn’t enough they pay no rates. The footbridge’s remnant spaces below the stairs and ramps (headroom’s of less than 1.5m) can be designated as garbage collection points. This way the hawkers will have a place to damp wastes which can be collected be the city council.

Because of the formality that would result, it would be possible for the council askari to collect some predetermined revenue from the proprietors of those businesses.

Traditional recreational areas (parks, for instance) are giving way for modern areas such as shopping malls. In the bid to make the footbridge a landmark it is paramount that it becomes a place where people would enjoy hanging out. The green spaces around the bridge be fitted with park seats, drinking water fountains and planted with small trees to provide shade for the pedestrian. The bridges deck can also provide good viewing points towards the river of vehicular traffic below.

Complete with commercial and traffic information boards, and people going up and down while some hanging around or buying and selling goods and services, the footbridge could be transformed into an incredible streetscape feature.

Perhaps most importantly, the footbridge should be able to be accessed by all, including the infants, invalids and the physically challenged. The major mode of elevation should be ramps to cater for a wide spectrum of users.

Making the footbridge a business hub would also aid the safer cities initiative. The masses of people on and around the bridge can provide good vigilance hence discouraging muggers who hide on abandoned bridges.