Xiamen Mountains-to-Sea Trail (Health Footpaths)
A recreational lane and bridges above the city
A 23-kilometer large-scale network of footpaths, elevated footpaths and seven footbridges to give residents and visitors access to the nearby nature.
- Location
- Xiamen, China
- Category
- Pedestrian and Bicycle Bridges
- Year
- 2017 - 2020
- Client
- Xiamen Municipal Construction Development Co., Ltd.
- Collaborator
- XMEDI – Xiamen Municipal Engineering
Design Institute /
Schlaich Bergermann Partner - Size
- 23 km
- Photos
- David Sommer
Xiamen Health Foothpaths connects Xiamen in the South China with its green surroundings. Dissing+Weitling has designed the 23-kilometre large-scale network of footpaths, elevated footpaths and seven footbridges to give residents and visitors access to the nearby nature.
The Hemei Bridge is the most ambitious crossing in Xiamen’s Mountains-to-Sea Trail due to its pioneering size and the small footprint available for the pylon. Dissing+Weitling won Xiamen Health Foothpaths in an international competition. The project is one of several examples of how the drawing office creates green mobility in China.
The Xiamen Health Footpath starts at Dongdu Cruise Plaza and ends at Guanyinshan Beach. It includes an 11 kilometers elevated path and seven large-span node bridges as well as a newly transformed green area along the footpath. The project also connects a series of eight mountains - Huwei Mountain, Xianyue Mountain, Yuanshan Mountain, Xueling Mountain, Hutou Mountain, Jinshan Mountain, Huzai Mountain and Guanyin Mountain – and the 3 water areas Yundang Lake, Wuyuan Bay and Lakeside Reservoir.
The project offer more than 50 entrances and exits, 4 viewing platforms, 10 meeting points, 12 public toilets and other convenient service facilities.
We have focused on improving the pedestrian's ability to move around the city. The central part of Xiamen is located on an island that is densely populated with the exception of a number of rocky hills with lush vegetation. The idea of the footpaths is to connect these oases of harmony and tranquility with bridges, creating a continuous path independent of the hectic life from the city below.
Xiamen Mountains-to-Sea Trail is connected to Xiamen Bicycle Skyway. The Xiamen Health Footpath opened to the public New Year's Day 2020. After its completion, Xiamen Health footpath has become a landmark of Xiamen and Fujian Province, attracting a large number of citizens and tourists. Mountain and sea health trails that pass through the urban area and natural landscapes meet the various requirements, for users with disabilities, such as elevators at places with large height differences.
Yuanshan Bridge. Total length 130 meters, main span 93 meters, arch 30 meters from the ground and the width of the bridge is 4.4 meters. This bridge is placed at the intersection of Jiahe Road and Yuanshan South Road, adjacent to Tangbian Subway Station and Track Complex of Metro Line 1.
Specific solutions for specific challenges
The healthy trail runs through the east-west direction of Xiamen Island, passes through residential and commercial areas, connects mountain parks, water parks, urban slow-path systems and the existing trail system from the mountain. Following the ‘people-oriented’ design principle, the longitudinal slopes are reasonably controlled throughout the trail, and the needs of pedestrian walking and jogging are fully considered.
Each node bridge respond to the specific venue; Dissing+Weitling proposed specific solutions for specific challenges, and each bridge has its own characteristics.
Fast-paced construction
The construction time of Xiamen Health Trail was very short, and the hills and forests in the environment was challenging. Therefore, Dissing+Weitling chose to use highly prefabricated components; due to their lightweight, these components can be transported to the site without heavy machinery with minimal damage to vegetation.
Xiamen Footpath