The Kids' Bridge, also named Koolangka Bridge meaning 'chilldren' in Noongar, officially opened on 4 August 2021.
The bridge is providing families and children using facilities on the Queen Elizabeth II Medical Centre campus the opportunity to escape the rigours of their hospital journey by safely visiting Kings Park. Clinicians strongly agree that providing the opportunity to visit places like Kings Park is positive for the overall wellbeing of unwell children and their families.
The three metre wide, 217-metre long pedestrian bridge over Winthrop Avenue in Nedlands connects to the lawn area located between Perth Children’s Hospital (PCH) and the multi-story carpark on the Queen Elizabeth II Medical Centre grounds to Kings Park.
Design and construction
Proposed since 2012, the bridge was initially considered as part of the Perth Children’s Hospital development. However, it was deferred to ensure the hospital was completed first. Deferring the project also enabled the development of a collaborative delivery plan to be prepared with key decision makers for design, construction and ongoing maintenance of the bridge.
Design engineers AECOM completed the design of the Kids' Bridge with footprint, users, cost, constructability and maintenance requirements key considerations.
Stakeholders
The project involved stakeholders from Perth Children’s Hospital, the Perth Children’s Hospital Foundation, QEIIMC Trust, Main Roads, Botanic and Parks Authority, Department of Health, Child and Adolescent Health Service and City of Perth, as well as the community.
We worked with the Botanical Gardens and Park Authority (BGPA), Perth Children’s Hospital Foundation, Child and Adolescent Health Service, Perth Children’s Hospital and City of Perth to minimise the project footprint on flora and fauna in the park.