Futuristic, statement-piece people bridge opens near Atlanta's airport

The City of College Park now counts a can’t-miss, sculptural piece of people-friendly infrastructure that links two popular destinations and helps keep pedestrians and cyclists out of vehicle traffic.

Spanning 200 feet across four-lane Camp Creek Parkway, the Global Gateway Connector Bridge is now open as a connection between downtown College Park and Georgia International Convention Center—a key part of a broader multi-use trail initiative in the area.

According to project engineers STV, the suspension bridge is punctuated by an 80-foot-tall steel basket-handle arch that required five cranes to lift and install in September.

Other components include dramatic lighting at night, a suspended deck, and custom fence detailing and architectural rails.

Courtesy of STV

The bridge project, situated a few hundred feet from Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, cost $13.7 million, including work on support walls and improvements to nearby multi-use trails, according to STV. (Despite inflation, the cost was still less than half of downtown Atlanta’s controversial serpentine bridge structure deluxe.)

STV officials joined College Park dignitaries in cutting the proverbial ribbon for the Gateway bridge on Tuesday.

The project's connecting, 1.08-mile trail begins downtown at the intersection of John Wesley Avenue and West Main Street before heading toward the convention center.

Immensity of the bridge structure is shown while under construction in College Park. Courtesy of STV

Where the Gateway trail project terminates in downtown College Park after crossing Camp Creek Parkway. The airport is shown at bottom right. Google Maps

The 10-foot-wide connector pathway was designed to optimize bicyclist and pedestrian safety—a Camp Creek Parkway bypass for people not in cars, basically—while providing access to schools, markets, and medical clinics in the area. It also serves to connect College Park’s downtown MARTA station to the convention center and, in theory, the long-planned Six West development, a massive proposal spanning more than 300 acres that’s been likened to a southside version of Atlantic Station.

The Atlanta Regional Commission covered the cost of more than 80 percent of the Gateway project’s design and construction. The rest was paid for via TSPLOST and College Park’s general fund, project officials previously said.

Josh Stamm, a STV senior engineer, said in a prepared statement the complex design and installation of the Gateway resulted in “both a visual landmark for the City of College Park and a crucial infrastructure upgrade” that now provides a “seamless pedestrian link.”

Courtesy of STV