The Millau Viaduct is a large cable-stayed road-bridge that spans the valley of the River Tarn near Millau in southern France. It is the tallest vehicular bridge in the world, with one pier's summit at 343 metres (1,125 ft)—slightly taller than the Eiffel Tower and only 38 m (125 ft) shorter than the Empire State Building. It was formally dedicated on 14 December 2004 and opened to traffic two days later.
The bridge’s construction broke three world records:
- The highest piles in the world: piles P2 and P3, 244.96 and 221.05 metres in height respectively, broke the French record previously held by the Tulle and Verrières Viaducts (141m), and the world record previously held by the Kochertal Viaduct (Germany), which peaked at 181 metres;
- The highest mast in the world: the height of the mast atop pile P2, peaks at 343m.
- The highest road bridge deck in the world, which is 270m above the Tarn River at its highest point. Only the bridge deck of the Royal Gorge Bridge (321m) in Colorado, United States is higher, and is considered the highest bridge in the world, but is only open to pedestrian traffic.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment