original publication material - courtesy of Foster + Partners
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Architect
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References
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Wikipedia, licensed under the GFDL
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Millau Viaduct
by Frederic P Miller; Agnes F Vandome; John McBrewster
90 pages books.google.com -
The Geek Atlas
by John Graham-Cumming
544 pages books.google.com -
The architecture of bridge design
by David Bennett
198 pages books.google.com -
Recent developments in bridge engineering
by Khaled M. Mahmoud
373 pages books.google.com -
Exploding the Myths of Modern Architecture
by Malcolm Millais
296 pages books.google.com -
Advanced engineering mathematics
by Dennis G. Zill; Michael R. Cullen
929 pages books.google.com -
Advances in cable-supported bridges
by Khaled M. Mahmoud
261 pages books.google.com
Suggestions
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Built / United Kingdom, Wakefield Tickle Cock Bridgeby DSDHA -
Built / Chile, Zapallar Pedestrian Bridge in Zapallar -
Built / Taiwan, Kaohsiung City Heart of Love River -
Built / Norway, Aurland Aurland Look Out -
Built / China, Zhangzhou Bridge School at Pinghe -
Built / Ireland, Dublin Samuel Beckett Bridge -
Built / Alessandria Cittadella Bridge -
Built / Romania, Drobeta-Turnu Severin Apollodorus Bridgeby Apollodorus -
Built / Netherlands, Almere Almere Bridge -
Built / Italy, Rome Pons Sublicius
Bridges are often considered to belong to the realm of the engineer rather than
that of the architect. But the architecture of infrastructure has a powerful impact on
the environment and the Millau Viaduct, designed in close collaboration with
structural engineers, illustrates how the architect can play an integral role in the
design of bridges. It follows the Millennium Bridge over the River Thames in
expressing a fascination with the relationships between function, technology and
aesthetics in a graceful structural form.
Located in southern France, the bridge connects the motorway networks of France
and Spain, opening up a direct route from Paris to Barcelona. The bridge crosses
the River Tarn, which runs through a spectacular gorge between two high plateaux.
Interestingly, alternative readings of the topography suggested two possible
structural approaches: to celebrate the act of crossing the river or to articulate the
challenge of spanning the 2.46 kilometres from one plateau to the other in the
most economical manner. Although historically the river was the geological
generator of the landscape, it is very narrow at this point, and so it was the second
reading that suggested the most appropriate structural solution.
A cable-stayed, masted structure, the bridge is delicate, transparent, and has the
optimum span between columns. Each of its sections spans 342 metres and its
columns range in height from 75 metres to 245 metres (equivalent to the height of
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 Aframe above deck level. The tapered form of the columns both expresses their
structural loads and minimises their profile in elevation. Not only does this give the
bridge a dramatic silhouette, but crucially, it also makes the minimum intervention in
the landscape.
description by architects
Building Activity
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idris uploaded a personabout a year ago via OpenBuildings.com
