The Tejo and Trancão Park covers approximately 90ha of riverside area on the eastern bank of the river Tejo. The EXPO’98 intervention area encompasses the area from the Vasco da Gama Tower located on the southern boundary of the park to the Trancão river which forms the northern boundary. The inception of this multi-functional area helped to define an exceptional landscape with environmental diversity (Tejo’s Estuary Natural Reserve is situated within the vicinity).
The proposal aimed to establish a spatial organization that offers great scenic, visual and sensory perception whilst being sustained by a structure which reflects coherence and uniformity. The fundamental structuring elements are landforms which shape the ecology, scenery and functionality of the park. The significance of the prospective landscape is characterized by their diverse yet rhythmic flow. An ecological pattern is repeated throughout the park where a new contrast is established between the gentle south facing slopes and sharp north facing ones.
Floral planting schemes and ground cover plans match their respective ecological conditions allowing space and time for establishment. The proposal was to provide a park which is able to withstand a large number of users. Therefore, the introduced systems are necessarily artificial in order to bear a suitable ecological load. The path system composes a hierarchical network that defines an autonomous structure. The concept of scenic perception in the park focused on two key drivers, the creation of visual corridors and the construction of landforms and large swathes of trees to compliment the pedestrian route to the river.
