Is there a possible way of upgrading Rotterdam by means of an extreme measurement, like an airport built on an especially made platform in terms of an island.
The title above is the question we asked ourself by making this project and after a quick brainstorm, Tamar and I, came to the conclusion that we suppose it would be a huge updgrade and typical for the city Rotterdam. To explain ourselves further I shall first explain something about the massive project Hong Kong started on to form a platform in terms of an island to create a place where an immense airport could be built. Hong Kong was in want of a new airport due to an end of upgrading and modernisation of its old one. The ideal situation of this new airport was not in the city, due to high buildings and extensive crowds present, but also not to far so quick and direct transportation from Hong Kong city and to the airport would be able. This finally evolved from plans on paper to actual building and resultated into Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) which from 1998 has become one of the greatest airports with a great magnitude of labour and transportation.
For this development of great magnitude of labour and transportation a lot of inventive ways had to be found to solve certain not yet solved problems then and this lead to creative way of thinking on a high-tech and inventive level. A nice link to an interactive website is: http://media.dsc.discovery.com/convergence/engineering/airport/interactive/interactive.html It shows in steps explained the engineering and ways in how every part was built.
As Tamar and I suggested after quick reasoning was the following, since Rotterdam is a modern and progressive city which is buisy upgrading itself all the time. Rotterdam has a kind of strive in which it is to stabilize its character and image as a world city more and more, and not only by its governement but also by the inhabitants itself. The airport already existing is a good and well organised service which has been improved and expanded in its services recently. But this is not what we see as the huge airport playing a worldly role as other airports are. We suggest an even larger airport than Schiphol Airport situated in Amsterdam, which would perfectly suit the magnitude of Rotterdam's harbour. After one of us, Fanny, had seen a television programme on Discovery Channel by accident a few weeks before the assignment was given pieces were connected and a plan derived which promised quite a future Rotterdam as we depicted. We suggest that since Rotterdam, as well as Hong Kong, has a direct acces to a larger spatial environment of water and its potential of becoming a world city that a certain platform should be possible to be built for an extensive airport. Our suggestion is to place this platform in form of an island close to an opening at the Europoort. This has to be carefully measured and calculated since the largest import and export is done in this harbour of Rotterdam. But at a height of upper part of Europoort and at the exact point of Hook of Holland there is a nice 'gap' in which the Island would not disturb transport of in- and outcoming goods at the Europoort and would also not disturb the private transportations in means of private vacations which also depart from Hook of Holland by boat. Plus at that exact spot transportation of goods by plane could be easily brought to the harbour and also to the centre of Rotterdam. Also private and business trips to Rotterdam are easily to be transported from the new derived island to the centre of Rotterdam by direct transportation of train and car. It might also be possible to go by boat and thus going directly to Rotterdam's centre.
"It might also be possible to go by boat and thus going directly to Rotterdam's centre."
As you can see on the picture above the island is not to be an island not detached to the maind land, but can be detached to the main land easily. We don''t know for sure, but it would probably cause problems since mostly the coastline is used because of its accessibility. So we suggest that that might be possible. So we suggest that the island to be built should not be directly attached to the main land but should be at a certain distance in which it is still possible to have the activity that is there nowadays running and maybe at its peak should be limited in space. But it depends on the extensiveness of that activity being held there. We suggest then a double bridge like the Tsing Ma Bridge which shouldn't be as exntensive as the one used for HKIA, but a smaller version accessing private transport such as cars, busses and all high speed traffic in the higher compartiments, but also accessing high speed train traffic in the lower compartiments. These highly advanced technology and optimal usage of space (double bridge, accessing two different types of transport) would also increase the modern and technologically advanced image of character of Rotterdam.
Coming back on the airport Rotterdam uses nowadays we suggest this might become a more exclusive airport being only extended in service and content than in actual size. We thought of this airport to become a landingplace for private jets and smaller plaind which serve more comfort to persons wanting more comfort offered than e.g. business class. In this way the recently improved airport is not being put to waste and Rotterdam still keeps a part of its smaller and more intimate airport which makes a larger offer to costumers by offering different services apart or connected to each other.
What we assume this extensive airport may bring to advantage is the increase in capacity of imports and exports via planes. More tourists attracted because of easier connection and addition of modern and highly technological advancements which improve the character of Rotterdam (as a world city). But also the easyness of a change in lifestyle and surrounding as Delft, Kinderdijk, Hoek van Holland are easily accessible. This tourism attraction wil lead to greater prosperity of income and will also be a drive for more modernisation of Rotterdam. But also business trips of ministers or any kind of businessman interfered in relations with The Hague is attracted more to this airport since it is more accesible to the Hague as it lies closer to The Hague than Amsterdam. And if people are in want of an exclusive treatment, possibly higher than the business class being offered at this airport, such as private jets etc. they are able to make use of the old airport which had become a more exclusive and smaller private service to a sort of "upper class".
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