Types of bridge

A bridge is a spanning structure that creates a passage over an obstacle such as a river, gorge, valley, road, railway and so on.

There are a wide range of different types of bridge, including:

• Aqueduct (a bridge carrying water).
• Arch bridges (a load-bearing arch in a state of compression).
• Bascule bridge (a lifting bridge).
• Beam bridges (simple beam or cantilever structures).
• Drawbridge (lifted at one end by cables – sometimes associated with castles and other defensive buildings).
• Green bridge (a crossing that allows the safe passage of wildlife).
• Half through bridge (a bridge in which the lower chord carries the vehicular or pedestrian traffic).
• Lift bridge (a bridge that lifts to allow passage underneath).
• Movable bridge (a spanning structure that can change position or shape to accommodate different situations.
• Navigable aqueduct (structures that incorporate canals above other waterways, valleys or transportation infrastructure).
• Overbridge (a bridge crossing over a transport corridor).
• Pontoon bridge (a floating bridge).
• Retractable bridge (to accommodate different situations and different types of traffic – such as a thrust bridge).
• Submersible bridge (or ducking bridge).
• Suspension bridges (towers secured by cables that suspend the central structural span or deck).
• Swing bridge (a bridge that opens by swinging).
• Through bridge (a bridge in which the lower chord carries the vehicular or pedestrian traffic and having cross-bracing located above the traffic).
• Underbridge (a bridge crossing under a transport corridor such as a railway).
• Viaduct (a bridge like structure composed of a series of spans, used to carry roads and railways across valleys and other depressions).

NB The word 'bridge' can also be a used as a verb meaning to make a bridge over something or between things.

In the construction industry, the word bridge might also refer to a cold bridge. This is a situation in which there is a direct connection between the inside and outside of a building through one or more elements that are more thermally conductive than the rest of the building envelope. For more information see: Cold bridge.

[edit] Related articles on Designing Buildings

• 3D printed bridge.
• Assessing bridges.
• Bridge construction.
• Bridge structures.
• Clifton Suspension Bridge.
• Examples of bridges.
• Garden bridge.
• Genoa bridge collapse.
• Learning from the Genoa bridge collapse.
• London Bridge and its houses, c1209-1761.
• Optimal arch bridge.
• Queensferry Crossing.
• Saving Dick Nunn's bridge.
• The Iron Bridge.
• The Menai Suspension Bridge.
• The Millau Viaduct.

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Any more information about viaducts?