Grand Pont, Stone arch bridge in Lausanne, Switzerland

The Grand Pont is a stone bridge over the Flon valley in Lausanne, 175 m long and 15 m wide, its deck now about 13 m above the filled ground. It has two tiers of arches: 19 upper arches and 6 lower ones, with piers faced in Meillerie cut stone. The roadway is flanked by two 1.40 m pavements and cast-iron railings.

Adrien Pichard, cantonal engineer of Vaud, designed the bridge as part of his 1836 "traversée de Lausanne"; work began in 1839, and after his death in 1841 Henri Perregaux completed it, inaugurated on 6 October 1844 at a cost of 407,000 francs. Initially called pont neuf or pont de Pépinet, it was renamed pont Pichard after an 1845 petition and press campaign, then became the Grand Pont in the first quarter of the 20th century. Between 1874 and 1876 the Flon valley was filled up to the second row of arches with spoil from the Ouchy funicular, lowering the bridge from 25 to 13 metres.

The bridge serves as a daily passage between two parts of the city and holds official recognition as a cultural property. It shapes how people experience the city layout and how the two neighborhoods relate to each other spatially.

The walkway is easily accessible for pedestrians at any time of day, though mornings and late afternoons see the heaviest foot traffic. It offers a direct route between central neighborhoods and is safest to cross during daylight hours.

The bridge was closed to traffic right after the New Year 2021/2022 holidays for renovation, with works expected to last about a year. Transports publics de la région lausannoise set up a special network during the works, and a temporary footbridge was built alongside for pedestrians and cyclists.