The Ponte della Musica (“Bridge of Music”) connects the Lungotevere Cadorno and the Foro Italico to the Piazza Gentile Da Fabriano and the Via Guido Reni (where the MAXXI 21st century art museum is located) in the Flaminio district of Rome.
Ponte della Musica Rome
History and description
It is Rome’s newest bridge and was inaugurated on the date of the city’s 2,764th anniversary, April 21, 2011. (It would actually be more accurate to say that the Ponte della Musica is Rome’s newest bridge over water, since in June 2012 the Ponte Ostiense was inaugurated. This bridge only crosses railway and metro tracks, though.)
The Ponte della Musica gets its name from the Auditorium Parco della Musica, though it might as well have been called Ponte dello Sport, since the Olympic Stadium, the Flaminio Stadium, the swimming and the tennis stadium as well as the Palazzetto dello Sport are all in the near vicinity.
Originally the bridge was only meant for pedestrians and cyclists, but later it was adapted to also allow public transportation vehicles. It is 18m wide and has a length of 190m and consists of two steel arches. Staircases connect the bridge to each river bank.
The Ponte della Musica was designed by the British firm Powell Williams, who won an international competition in 2000.