The Kangaroo Point Bridge is a

pedestrian A pedestrian is a person traveling on foot, by wheelchair or with other mobility aids. Streets and roads often have a designated footpath for pedestrian traffic, called the '' sidewalk'' in North American English, the ''pavement'' in British En ...

and

cyclist Cycling, also known as bicycling or biking, is the activity of riding a bicycle or other types of pedal-driven human-powered vehicles such as balance bikes, unicycles, tricycles, and quadricycles. Cycling is practised around the world fo ...

bridge A bridge is a structure built to Span (engineering), span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or railway) without blocking the path underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, whi ...

across the

Brisbane River The Brisbane River (Turrbal language, Turrbal: ) is the longest river in South East Queensland, Australia. It flows through the city of Brisbane, before emptying into Moreton Bay on the Coral Sea. John Oxley, the first European to explore the ...

Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

, Australia. The bridge connects the suburb of Kangaroo Point with the

Brisbane central business district Brisbane City is the central suburb and central business district of Brisbane, the state capital of Queensland, Australia. It is also colloquially referred to as the "Brisbane CBD", "the city", or simply "town". The CBD is located on a point ...

. The design for the bridge is a single-mast cable stayed structure which aligns the Alice Street– Edward Street intersection in the City with Scott Street, Kangaroo Point north from the Thornton Street ferry wharf. Construction of the bridge began in 2021 with it opening on 15 December 2024.

Design

The reference design for the bridge was completed by Cox Architecture and Arup. The single-mast cable stayed structure has a length of with a width of reaching a height of from high water level to the bridge deck, which is the same height as Victoria and

Captain Cook Captain James Cook (7 November 1728 – 14 February 1779) was a British Royal Navy officer, explorer, and cartographer famous for his three voyages of exploration to the Pacific and Southern Oceans, conducted between 1768 and 1779. He complet ...

bridges. The final design and documentation was developed by Blight Rayner Architecture and Dissing + Weitling as part of Connect Brisbane consortium with

Besix Watpac BESIX Watpac is an Australian construction and civil engineering company. Formerly listed in on the Australian Securities Exchange, it is now a subsidiary of Besix. History BESIX Watpac was founded by Gregory Watkins in Brisbane, Queensland as ...

as managing contractor. The redesign includes the optimisation of the four-pronged mast by introducing a cruciform mast tie, refining the original sketch and making it more structurally efficient. The redesign of the Kangaroo Point pier, opens up to C.T. White Park and employs a curated selection of angular geometries to create a cohesive design. The new design also incorporated the addition of a boutique restaurant over the river and a cafe at the city end.

History

The bridge construction was included in the Brisbane City Master Plan 2014 as a priority project. It was expected that the construction of the bridge would be completed within five years. On 31 October 2016, council commenced geotechnical investigative works. In August 2018, the state government offered funding to the city council to develop a business case. In November 2020, the Brisbane City Council released Draft Reference Design Consultation Report for the bridge. A preliminary

business case A business case captures the reasoning for initiating a project or task. Many projects, but not all, are initiated by using a business case. It is often presented in a well-structured written document, but may also come in the form of a short ver ...

for the project was expected in late 2021. Construction was awarded in 2021 to

. Construction of the bridge began in 2021 and was expected to be completed in 2023. 30 boat

mooring A mooring is any permanent structure to which a seaborne vessel (such as a boat, ship, or amphibious aircraft) may be secured. Examples include quays, wharfs, jetties, piers, anchor buoys, and mooring buoys. A ship is secured to a mooring to ...

s on the Brisbane River were removed for the bridge's construction. The bridge's construction cost was initially expected to be $190 million. In September 2023, it was announced the bridge would cost $299 million. The bridge was officially opened on 15 December 2024. A

cafe A coffeehouse, coffee shop, or café (), is an establishment that serves various types of coffee, espresso, latte, americano and cappuccino, among other hot beverages. Many coffeehouses in West Asia offer ''shisha'' (actually called ''nargil ...

on the city side of the bridge called Mulga Bill's Kitchen & Bar opened on 14 February 2025. A 100-seat restaurant called Stilts with over the river dining is located on the city end of the bridge.

Integration and connectivity

The Kangaroo Point Green Bridge significantly enhances

bike path A bike path or a cycle path is a bikeway separated from motorized traffic and dedicated to cycling or shared with pedestrians or other non-motorized users. In the US a bike path sometimes encompasses '' shared use paths'', "multi-use path", or ...

connectivity between the

and Kangaroo Point, facilitating easier movement between the city and eastern suburbs.

Project features

The bridge spans approximately 460 metres with an elegant single-mast

cable-stayed A cable-stayed bridge has one or more ''towers'' (or ''pylons''), from which cables support the bridge deck. A distinctive feature are the cables or stays, which run directly from the tower to the deck, normally forming a fan-like pattern o ...

design, minimising visual impact while complementing the city

skyline A skyline is the wikt:outline, outline or shape viewed near the horizon. It can be created by a city's overall structure, or by human intervention in a rural area, rural setting, or in nature that is formed where the sky meets buildings or the ...

. It features dedicated pedestrian and cycle paths, with a minimum width of 6.8 metres. Included in the design are high-quality landing points that connect and activate communities on either side of the Brisbane River, including upgraded public realms and enhanced connectivity for

pedestrians A pedestrian is a person traveling on foot, by wheelchair or with other mobility aids. Streets and roads often have a designated footpath for pedestrian traffic, called the ''sidewalk'' in North American English, the ''pavement'' in British Eng ...

and cyclists. Safetylyne’s advanced ladder cable system and Canopy Horizontal Lifelines and Static Lines play a crucial role in protecting maintenance staff responsible for the bridge's ongoing upkeep. These systems are designed to facilitate safe access while supporting Brisbane City Council’s long-term maintenance objectives, helping to preserve the landmark’s condition and potentially extending its lifespan.

Environmental and social impact

The bridge incorporates design elements like

solar panels A solar panel is a device that converts sunlight into electricity by using photovoltaic (PV) cells. PV cells are made of materials that produce excited electrons when exposed to light. These electrons flow through a circuit and produce direct ...

, cooling vegetation, and shade cover along the length of the bridge. It features dining venues such as an above-water restaurant and bar, and a riverside café. The bridge offers panoramic views of the river and city, with rest nodes for seating and shade. A new signalised crossing at

Edward Edward is an English male name. It is derived from the Anglo-Saxon name ''Ēadweard'', composed of the elements '' ēad'' "wealth, fortunate; prosperous" and '' weard'' "guardian, protector”. History The name Edward was very popular in Anglo-S ...

and

Alice Alice may refer to: * Alice (name), most often a feminine given name, but also used as a surname Literature * Alice (''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland''), a character in books by Lewis Carroll * ''Alice'' series, children's and teen books by ...

streets provides safe, continuous access between the bridge and the city centre.

References

External links

Kangaroo Point Green Bridge - Brisbane City Council

Bridge design at the Richard Kirk Architect web page

Bridge Structure Development at the Cox Architect web page

Kangaroo Point Green Bridge Access Systems Installation - Safetylyne
{{coord missing, Queensland Bridges completed in 2024 Bridges in Brisbane Bridges over the Brisbane River Brisbane central business district Cable-stayed bridges in Australia Kangaroo Point, Queensland Pedestrian bridges in Australia 2024 establishments in Australia