Aesthetic Design of TOYOSHIMA Bridge

Abstract

The Toshima Bridge is one of eight bridges called the Akinada-Shotou connecting bridges that connect the mainland of Japan to islands in the Seto Inland Sea region in the southern part of Hiroshima Prefecture. The Toshima bridge is the third bridge from the mainland of Japan, and it was built as single steel suspensions bridge which center span is 540m. The region where the bridge spans is in a calm Seto Inland Sea and has a beautiful natural environment that consists of rich green islands. The Toshima Bridge is a large-scale structure that has a main tower and creates new scenery. The design of the bridge was to draw out functional beauty of the structure. The landscape architecture was aimed to attempt harmony with the scenery in the surroundings. Especially in a main tower design, the portion with slender length of the foot was made the best use of, and the design to give a light impression and individuality was done by designing the horizontal brace and the tower top part. In addition, the curve was used for the horizontal brace and the pier shape. Its softness was produced in an attempt to bring harmony with the natural environment. In the painting color of the bridge, it was selected that considered the har-mony of an environmental color.