Portal:Bridges/Intro

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A bridge is a structure built to span a gorge, valley, road, railroad track, river, body of water, or any other physical 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.

The first bridges were spans made of wooden logs or planks and eventually stones, using a simple support and crossbeam arrangement. Most of these early bridges were very poorly built and could rarely support heavy weights. It was this inadequacy which led to the development of better bridges. The arch was first used by the Roman Empire for bridges and aqueducts, some of which still stand today. These arch based bridges could stand in conditions that would damage or destroy more primitive designs.

An example is the Alcántara Bridge, built over the river Tagus, near Portugal. Most earlier bridges would have been swept away by the strong current. The Romans also used cement, which reduced the variation of strength found in natural stone. One type of cement, called pozzolana, consisted of water, lime, sand, and volcanic rock. Brick and mortar bridges were built after the Roman era, as the technology for cement was lost then later rediscovered.

Although large Chinese bridges existed in wooden construction since the ancient Warring States, the oldest surviving stone bridge in China is the Zhaozhou Bridge, built from 595 to 605 AD during the Sui Dynasty. This bridge is also historically significant as it is the world's oldest open-spandrel stone segmental arch bridge. European segmental arch bridges date back to at least the Alconétar Bridge (approximately 2nd century AD), while the enormous Roman era Trajan's Bridge (105 AD) featured open-spandrel segmental arches in wooden construction.