Three Bridges over the Hoofdvaart
Santiago Calatrava

Photos courtesy of Santiago Calatrava Archives

Common elements shared by all three bridges, indicate that these separate structures belong to one family.

Located immediately to the west of Amsterdam's busy Schiphol Airport, the municipality of Haarlemmermeer is an area of rapid economic and urban development, centered on the town of Hoofddorp. As part of its infrastructure planning, the Haarlemmermeer Council (Gemeente Haarlemmermeer) decided to build three bridges that would be signature structures at the main crossings over the Hoofdvaart.


Photos courtesy of Santiago Calatrava Archives
The three crossings the Council selected are Hoofddorp Junction, which marks the entrance to Hoofddorp, Toolenburg Junction, an important traffic junction in Hoofddorp, and Nieuw Vennep Junction, which marks the entrance to Nieuw Vennep.


Photos courtesy of Santiago Calatrava Archives

Photos courtesy of Santiago Calatrava Archives

Photos courtesy of Santiago Calatrava Archives
Common elements shared by all three bridges, indicate that these separate structures belong to one family. All three bridges are cable-stayed and have a main steel pylon in the form of a spindle. The spindle varies its position, from vertical to inclined along the Hoofdvaart, as travelers pass from bridge to bridge. The cable layout also varies from design to design, accentuating the importance and height of the pylon for each bridge.


Photos courtesy of Santiago Calatrava Archives

Photos courtesy of Santiago Calatrava Archives

Photos courtesy of Santiago Calatrava Archives

Photos courtesy of Santiago Calatrava Archives

Photos courtesy of Santiago Calatrava Archives

Photos courtesy of Santiago Calatrava Archives

Photos courtesy of Santiago Calatrava Archives
The three bridges enables the smooth flow of pedestrian, bicycle, and motor traffic on both the local and inter-regional level. They also help to implement the infrastructure design for Haarlemmermeer while at the same time, creating a visual path along the Hoofdvaart.