The Tallest Bridge In The World : Millau Viaduct, France

Nathan

Millau Viaduct, France

Designed by : Sir Norman Foster & Partners


Bridges are often considered to belong to the engineer's realm rather than the architect's. But the architecture of infrastructure has a powerful impact on the environment. The Millau Viaduct, designed in collaboration with engineers, illustrates how the architect can play an integral role in bridge design.



Located in southern France, the bridge will connect the motorway from Paris to Barcelona at the point where it is interrupted by the River Tarn, which runs through a wide gorge between two plateaux. A reading of the topography suggested two possible approaches: to cross the river, the geological generator of the landscape; or there was the challenge of spanning the 2.5 kilometres from one plateau to the other in the most economical manner.



The structural solution follows from the latter philosophical standpoint. The bridge has the optimum span between cable-stayed columns. It is delicate, transparent, and uses the minimum
material, which makes it less costly to construct. Each of its sections spans 350 metres and its columns range in height from 75 metres to 345 metres - higher than the Eiffel Tower - with the masts rising a further 90 metres above the road deck. To accommodate the expansion and contraction of the concrete deck, each column splits into two thinner, more flexible columns below the roadway, forming an A-frame above deck level. This structure creates a dramatic silhouette - and crucially it makes the minimum intervention in the landscape.

Millau Viaduct Website

> other website

Appointment Date: 1993

Construction Date: 2002

Completion Date: 2005

Statistics: Length: 2.5 km

Height: 280 m

Client: Department of Transport and Public Works of France

Consultants:
Chapelet-Defol-Mousseigne
Ove Arup and Partners

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Nathan

"He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose." - Jim Elliot

hatchet

That's damn impressive. I've worked on some big buildings - 300'+ tower cranes.. but nothing close to 300m

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Rich
WIT Construction Co.
Superior MT Contractor

Mike Finley

I knew the French had to be good for something else besides surrendering at the drop of a hat.

Floorwizard

Socre bleu!!!!!!!

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"in 20 years you will regret more what you did not do than what you did"

Grumpy

I'd like to get the %5 commission on that sale