London Cable Car
Location
London United Kingdom
Year Realized
2012
Architect
Wilkinson Eyre Architects
Category
Monocoque Structures
The London Cable Car is the UK’s first urban cable car system, crossing the River Thames and connecting the Greenwich Peninsula, near the O2 Arena, with the Royal Docks and ExCeL London. The system introduced a distinctive new piece of transport infrastructure to the city while providing an elevated connection between two important areas of East London.
Three sculptural steel towers support the cable car across the Thames. Their distinctive forms are composed of steel ribbons arranged in tapering spirals, creating slender structures that change in appearance when viewed from different positions along the river.
CIG was responsible for the engineering and production of the complete 3D building package for the three steel towers. Our expertise in complex steel structures and 3D production helped translate the sculptural tower design into buildable components for this large-scale infrastructure project.
The project received several recognitions in 2013, including the New London Award for Transport and Infrastructure, the Structural Steel Design Award, and the ICE Evening Standard People’s Choice Award. It was also shortlisted for a RIBA Award.
Image © Wilkinson Eyre Architects
