Waterside, Nottingham
Precision lighting for a landmark crossing in a sensitive riverside environment
When Nottingham’s new Waterside Bridge opened in June 2026, it provided much more than another way across the River Trent.
The new 87-metre pedestrian and cycle bridge creates an important new connection between Trent Basin and Lady Bay, linking communities while improving access to Colwick Country Park, The Hook Local Nature Reserve and the wider riverside walking and cycling network. The bridge also provides a safer, traffic-free route for visitors travelling to nearby sporting venues.
For i-vision Lighting Solutions, the project presented a challenge familiar to many modern infrastructure schemes: deliver excellent lighting for users while respecting the surrounding environment.
Lighting without compromise
The riverside setting is rich in wildlife, with nearby habitats supporting kingfishers, swans, water voles, dragonflies, otters and many other protected species. The lighting therefore needed to provide a safe, comfortable experience for pedestrians and cyclists while keeping unwanted light intrusion to an absolute minimum.
Achieving that balance required careful optical control as well as consistent illumination across the full length of the crossing.
“One of our priorities was achieving excellent lighting uniformity while tightly controlling light dispersion. The project demonstrates how integrated handrail lighting can improve safety without unnecessary light intrusion into environmentally sensitive surroundings.”
Geoff Jones, Design Director
i-vision Lighting Solutions
The lighting solution
The bridge incorporates:
194 i-vision Pictor 4 asymmetric luminaires
Integrated within a 48.3 mm stainless steel circular hollow section (CHS) handrail
Three control enclosures
Switching coordinated with Nottingham’s street lighting control system
Lighting Integration, part of the PAI Group, carried out the system integration and installation, while i-vision manufactured the luminaires and provided technical support throughout the project.
The Pictor 4 is specifically designed for installation within tubular bridge handrails and public realm infrastructure. Operating from a safe SELV 48 V supply, the luminaire features IP67 ingress protection, IK10 impact resistance, galvanic isolation from the supporting structure and a choice of symmetric or asymmetric optics. It also supports a range of lighting control systems, including DALI, DMX and engineering dimming.
“Integrating two hundred luminaires into the bridge handrail required careful planning and close collaboration across the project team. The result is a clean installation that performs exactly as intended.”
Keith Elms, Operations Director
Lighting Integration (PAI Group)
Designed for performance
Bridge lighting has to satisfy several competing objectives.
It must provide sufficient illumination to make users feel safe and comfortable, maintain good uniformity along the route, minimise glare and avoid wasting light beyond the areas where it is needed.
For Waterside Bridge, the asymmetric optical distribution of the Pictor 4 luminaires helped direct light precisely onto the walking and cycling surface, reducing light spill into the surrounding riverside environment while maintaining consistent illumination across the crossing.
The result is lighting that supports both public safety and environmental stewardship.
Built through collaboration
The project brought together expertise from across the construction industry.
Lead contractor Balfour Beatty delivered the scheme alongside engineering consultants Dice Consulting and Ramboll. The bridge structure was fabricated by Britons before installation over the River Trent.
Lighting Integration was responsible for integrating and installing the lighting system, with i-vision supplying the luminaires and providing on-going technical support to help ensure the lighting met the project’s performance objectives.
Technical summary
Project: Waterside Bridge, Nottingham
Completed: June 2026
Bridge length: 87 metres
Application: Pedestrian and cycle bridge
Lighting manufacturer: i-vision Lighting Solutions
Installation partner: Lighting Integration (PAI Group)
Lighting system:
194 Pictor 4 asymmetric luminaires
48 V SELV system
Integrated within stainless steel CHS handrail
Three control enclosures
Connected to Nottingham’s street lighting switching regime