This former hospital area was, long ago, the site of the Pesthuis, the ward where patients who suffered from bubonic plague were isolated. Far outside the walls of Amsterdam, surrounded by water to keep this contagious disease at a safe distance. When the University Hospital that was located here moved out in the Eighties, a mixed residential and small business district was developed, breaking isolation and establishing links with its surroundings.

The last connection required, was a bridge over the canal to the west of this compound. The bridge is new, but similar to existing ones nearby. A slender steel construction, painted white, has its feet in the water, some distance from the embankment.

Between the arch and bank, the bridge deck can be lifted to allow maintenance for pipes and cables that run underneath the water level. House boats line the canal on both sides. The bridge spans the remaining width of the canal.