PALGARD™ Pedestrian Bridge Glazing in Denver, Colorado, USA

The Regional Transportation District in Denver, Colorado, set out to improve commute times
between Boulder and Denver. One component in the plan was the construction of a pedestrian bridge across US36, allowing easy access to the Table Mesa Park-n-Ride. The designer identified the benefits of PALGARD hard coated monolithic polycarbonate and used the panels as the bridge’s glazing material. The bridge, opened to the public in 2014, was only the first of five such bridges in Colorado.

1. The Challenge

The Table Mesa bridge was built for pedestrians. As such, the designers wanted to take into account as many objective and subjective aspects of the human experience as possible, including visual and tactile impressions. 

The primary consideration was safety – they required a glazing material tough enough to hold against the harsh Colorado weather elements, as well as resist human impact such as leaning or colliding into the clear walls and rails.

A second design consideration was to facilitate ample natural light into the structure during the day and artificial light at night, providing a sense of comfort to people using the bridge, while maintaining energetic efficiency and saving on lighting expenses as much as possible. 

Lastly, the designers had to consider possible abuse such as vandalism and graffiti that can occur in public spaces.

2. Benefits of Palram’s Solution

Palram offered its PALGARD hard coated Monolithic Polycarbonate panels as a glazing material for the pedestrian bridge. 

• PALGARD has a glass like appearance and has equivalent transparency but is 200 times tougher and is virtually unbreakable. It easily resists physical abuse and vandalism including brute force activities such as throwing rocks or beating with hammers. 
• PALGARD’s hard coating protects the panels from scratches and abrasion. It also allows for easy cleaning of the surface in case of graffiti.
• PALGARD is less than half the weight of glass. It is considerably easier and safer to install.
• Palram provided the designer with load calculations in order to specify the correct panel thickness.
• PALGARD panels were provided in clear and bronze to achieve the required transparency, light transmission, and overall look and feel.

3. PALGARD’s Continuous Success

The pedestrian bridge at the Table Mesa Park-n-Ride was only the first in a series of five bridges that were later specified with PALGARD. The last of these bridges is expected to be completed this year.

4. The Details

Product: PALGARD 9.5mm, clear and bronze
Coverage: 550 SQM (6000 SQFT) per bridge, times five bridges
Customer: Regional Transportation District (RTD) Denver, Colorado
Architect: Bruce Yoder, CooverClark
Palram Contact: Marketing – Tal Furman