Different Types of Bridges

1. Shahadat Hossain Shakil (shshakil.buet@gmail.com)
BRIDGE
A bridge is a structure built to span a gorge, valley, road, railroad track, river, body of water, or
any other physical obstacle, for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle. Designs of
bridges will vary depending on the function of the bridge and the nature of the terrain where the
bridge is to be constructed.
Types of bridges
There are six main types of bridges: beam bridges, cantilever bridges, arch bridges, suspension
bridges, cable-stayed bridges and truss bridges.
1. Beam Bridge
Beam Bridges are a direct descendant of the log bridge; now more commonly made from
shallow steel 'I' beams, box girders, reinforced concrete, or post-tensioned concrete. It is
frequently used in pedestrian bridges and for highway overpasses and flyovers. As is its ancestor,
this bridge is in structural terms the simplest of the many bridge types.
Bridge 1 A steel pedestrian footbridge over a busy road in Swansea, Wales (UK).
2. Cantilever bridge
A cantilever bridge is a bridge built using cantilevers, structures that project horizontally into
space, supported on only one end. For small footbridges, the cantilevers may be simple beams;
however, large cantilever bridges designed to handle road or rail traffic use trusses built from
structural steel, or box girders built from prestressed concrete. The steel truss cantilever bridge
was a major engineering breakthrough when first put into practice, as it can span distances of
1

2. Shahadat Hossain Shakil (shshakil.buet@gmail.com)
over 1,500 feet (460 m), and can be more easily constructed at difficult crossings by virtue of
using little or no false work.
Bridge 2 Forth Bridge Edinburgh.
3. Arch bridge
An arch bridge is a bridge with abutments at each end shaped as a curved arch. Arch bridges
work by transferring the weight of the bridge and its loads partially into a horizontal thrust
restrained by the abutments at either side. A viaduct (a long bridge) may be made from a series
of arches, although other more economical structures are typically used today.
Bridge 3 Alcántara roman Bridge, Spain.
Types of Arch Bridge
 Aqueducts and canal viaducts
 Supported deck arch bridge
 Suspended deck arch bridge
2

3. Shahadat Hossain Shakil (shshakil.buet@gmail.com)
 Tied arch bridge
4. Suspension bridge
A suspension bridge is a type of bridge where the main load-bearing elements are hung from
suspension cables. While modern suspension bridges with level decks date from the early
19th century, earlier types are reported from the 3rd century BC. Simple suspension bridges,
for use by pedestrians and livestock, are still constructed, based upon the ancient Inca rope
bridge.
Bridge 4 Tsing Yi-Ma Wan, Hong Kong
5. Cable-stayed bridges
A cable-stayed bridge is a bridge that consists of one or more columns (normally referred to as
towers or pylons), with cables supporting the bridge deck.
.
3

4. Shahadat Hossain Shakil (shshakil.buet@gmail.com)
Bridge 5 The Rio-Antirio bridge in Greece
Types
 Side-spar cable-stayed bridge
 Cantilever-spar cable-stayed bridge
 Multiple span cable-stayed bridge
 Extra dosed bridge
 Cable-stayed cradle System Bridge
6. Truss bridge
A truss bridge is a bridge composed of connected elements (typically straight) which may be
stressed from tension, compression, or sometimes both in response to dynamic loads.
Truss bridges are one of the oldest types of modern bridges.
4

5. Shahadat Hossain Shakil (shshakil.buet@gmail.com)
Bridge 6 General Hertzog Bridge over the Orange River at Aliwal North
Use
A bridge is designed for trains, pedestrian or road traffic, a pipeline or waterway for water
transport or barge traffic. An aqueduct is a bridge that carries water, resembling a viaduct, which
is a bridge that connects points of equal height. A road-rail bridge carries both road and rail
traffic.
Abuse
Bridges are subject to unplanned uses as well. The areas underneath some bridges have become
makeshift shelters and homes to homeless people, and the undersides of bridges all around the
world are spots of prevalent graffiti. Some bridges attract people attempting suicide, and become
known as suicide bridges.
Double-decker Bridge
Double-decker bridges have two levels, such as the San Francisco – Oakland Bay Bridge, with
two road levels. Tsing Ma Bridge and Kap Shui Mun Bridge in Hong Kong have six lanes on
their upper decks, and on their lower decks there are two lanes and a pair of tracks for MTR
metro trains. Some double-decker bridges only use one level for street traffic; the Washington
5

6. Shahadat Hossain Shakil (shshakil.buet@gmail.com)
Avenue Bridge in Minneapolis reserves its lower level for automobile traffic and its upper level
for pedestrian and bicycle traffic (predominantly students at the University of Minnesota.
Bridge 7 Moscow's Vorobyovy Gory metro station of Sokolnicheskaya Line (at night).
6

7. Shahadat Hossain Shakil (shshakil.buet@gmail.com)
Avenue Bridge in Minneapolis reserves its lower level for automobile traffic and its upper level
for pedestrian and bicycle traffic (predominantly students at the University of Minnesota.
Bridge 7 Moscow's Vorobyovy Gory metro station of Sokolnicheskaya Line (at night).
6