Located on the 6th floor of the hotel, the ‘Sky Bridge’ invites pedestrians on the busy ground level arteries to experience the clear blue Texas sky from the safety of a stainless steel ‘gossamer’ bridge. This engineering marvel not only thrills the senses but allows for elegant and secure pedestrian access between key destinations: the 6th floor of the Austin Hilton to the 4th floor of the Austin Convention Center, crossing 4th and Neches streets
This $7.5 million project provides convenient access for hotel guests spending a lot of time in the convention center during mega-events such as South by Southwest or Rooster Teeth’s RTX Austin festival.
The bridge’s tubular structure and rhythmic design intervals facilitate a smooth, neutral transition between the two buildings. The engineering priority of the bridge is the utility, safety and enclosure of its users. The aesthetic challenge of the structure is a minimalist one, primarily for transparency in the inter-structural spaces. Because of the distance between vertical tubes, the structural infill elements needed expression without obscuring views to and from the bridge.