Designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Frank Gehry and structurally engineered by Skidmore, Owings and Merrill, it opened along with the rest of Millennium Park on July 16, 2004.

The bridge is known for its aesthetics, and Gehry's style is seen in its biomorphic allusions and extensive sculptural use of stainless steel plates to express abstraction.

[7] BP Bridge uses a concealed box girder design with a concrete base, and its deck is covered by hardwood floor boards.

Although the bridge is closed in winter because ice cannot be safely removed from its wooden walkway, it has received favorable reviews for its design and aesthetics.

The city also sought donors to cover the cost of Gehry's work, which would eventually become Jay Pritzker Pavilion and the BP Pedestrian Bridge.

[11][12] At the time, the Chicago Tribune dubbed Gehry "the hottest architect in the universe" in reference to the acclaim for his Guggenheim Museum Bilbao.

[13] Millennium Park project manager Edward Uhlir said "Frank is just the cutting edge of the next century of architecture", and noted that no other architect was being sought.

[15] The need to fund a bridge to span the eight-lane Columbus Drive was evident, but some planning for the park was delayed in anticipation of details on the redesign of Soldier Field.

[16] In January 2000, the city announced plans to expand the park to include features that became Cloud Gate, Crown Fountain, the McDonald's Cycle Center, and the BP Pedestrian Bridge.

BP Bridge is designed so that its inclined surfaces have a continuous five percent slope rather than landings and switchback ramps, which provides easy access for the physically challenged.

[8] Despite its hollow structure, and the fact that it is designed as a concealed beam bridge, the footbridge is built to highway standards and can support a full capacity load of pedestrians.

[6] The bridge was built using 22-gauge stainless steel type 316 plates (0.031 inches or 0.79 millimeters thick), with an angel hair finish and a flat interlocking panel process.

They designed, fabricated and installed custom type 4 brushed stainless steel parapets serving in the place of handrails on the bridge.

[42] On the day that the two halves of the bridge were joined, each side of Columbus Drive was closed for a 12-hour period and a 360-short-ton (320-long-ton; 330 t) crane was used to install the girders.

[1][37] It remained unnamed at the ribbon-cutting,[37] but before the July park opening, energy firm BP had paid $5 million for the bridge sponsorship and naming rights.

[49] Since the bridge is over an expressway-like trench of Columbus Drive, shoveling the snow onto passing cars is not an option and the Brazilian hardwood would be damaged by rock salt.

[52] The bridge is noted for its sculptural characteristics and Kamin describes it as a delightful pleasure that was designed to emphasize its artistic elements while de-emphasizing its concrete and steel support system.

[6] The New York Times notes that the artist Anish Kapoor's attempts to hide the seams of Cloud Gate were an interesting contrast to Gehry's architectural efforts.

For example, according to Gilfoyle, both structures embody Gehry's established asymmetrical style, evoking fluid, continuous motion and sculptural abstraction.

[44] The way the bridge flows in a continuum of unexpected directions is a break from Gehry's other work and other more traditional urban and architectural forms nearby.

[57] Pulitzer Prize-winning architecture critic Kamin gave the bridge four stars (out of a possible four) in his review and admires how "computers have given Gehry unparalleled formal freedom" to design "the complexity of its geometry" and multidimensional curvatures.

[6][61] Kamin also recommends anyone having a bad day to stroll across the bridge, adding, "You won't get where you're going quickly, but you'll feel a whole lot better once you're done.