GENTLY does it! And a striking new bridge is lowered into place so residents in neighbouring Hackney and Waltham Forest can reach the Olympic Park in Stratford.

The bridge spans Ruckholt Road, creating a new link between Hackney East Marsh and the Eton Manor site in the north of the Park.

During the 2012 Games, it will be the main route into the Park for spectators arriving at the Northern Spectator Mall.

And afterwards, the bridge will provide access into the new sports and leisure facilities in Eton Manor and the wider Olympic Park site. It needed one of the largest cranes in Europe to lift the 200 tonne structure — it’s 42 metres long and six metres wide — into place.

A temporary second bridge has also been installed to accommodate the extra spectator numbers during the Games. It will then be removed afterwards. Further road works around the site are planned by the Olympic Delivery Authority.