At night, that link is emphasised by a lighting scheme supplied and installed by Lighting Technology Projects. LTP has been involved with the project since mid-1998, and project manager Jonathan Hilton worked closely with lighting designer Claude Engle, who in turn linked with architect Lord Norman Foster’s design team. The night-time ‘look’ of the Bridge, frequently described as a ‘blade of light’ from bank to bank, is created by the use of Light Pipe, the only form of illumination employed. A total of 84 8m lengths of TIR Light Pipe 6" units, plus another 10 8m lengths of various 4" units connected to 250W light sources with specific colour temperatures, produce the desired effect.
However, this was a complex project, with problems of tolerances in running sections of lighting across bridge section joins and the necessary allowances for expansion and contraction. The bracketry had to be ‘disguised’ as an integral part of the structure and the control gear housed underneath the walkway also needed to be placed neatly and away from the sightlines. As for the Light Pipe itself, the tube coating had to allow for light to be emitted from the correct areas, so as to illuminate the walkway and relevant parts of the structure.