When was the millau viaduct completed

This makes her head and shoulders above her closest competition , the Yavuz Sultan Selim Bridge in Istanbul Turkey meters and the Russky Bridge in Russia meters. She is a cable-stayed, concrete and steel construction viaduct motorway bridge that spans the Tarn gorge valley near the town of Millau in Southern France. She cost somewhere in the order of million Euros to build and officially opened for business in The viaduct is widely considered a great technical and architectural feat and has won various awards since its inauguration.

Those interested in bridges, and heading for the Millau Viaduct south down the A75 motorway from Clermont Ferrand, will want to stop off on the way to view another magnificent viaduct, Gustave Eiffel's Viaduc de Garabit. This great 19th-century viaduct is best seen from the motorway rest area, the Aire de Service Viaduc Garabit Eiffel, where there is a small interpretive center. The Millau Viaduct was first conceived in the late s and construction began in Her construction took three years to complete and she was inaugurated in December of At the time of writing, this makes the viaduct 15 years old since completion.

Today the viaduct is a fond favorite of architectural fans the world over. While the motorway is free to use, there is a toll charge to cross the viaduct. Toll booths are located a couple of kilometers north of the viaduct. The viaduct was built to combat congestion on local roads around Millau during the summer holidays. Before her construction traffic needed to descend into the valley to traverse the area.

Construction began in and took three years to complete. She was inaugurated in December of At the peak of construction, master craftsman were enlisted to make the viaduct a reality. The viaduct is still the world's official tallest bridge in the world and stands at meters. She spans the valley for 2, meters.

It has also decreased the traffic congestion on the local roads, which caused much distress to the nearby residents, especially during the summer months. In an illustrative sketch by architect Norman Foster , the bridge is shown to have derived its form from that of a thread through a sewing needle. The whole idea was to imbue a feeling of certain delicacy and elegance to what is a big, massive structure. It will take a while before the world opens up and you can visit and enjoy the magnificence of the viaduct yourself.

However, you can visit the official website dedicated to it at leviaducdemillau. Here one can read about its history, learn about facts, use an interactive interface to gain further information about its structure, and much more. Sana Gupta has always beeninterested in too many things for her own good. Having studied architecture has only aggravated her desire to explore life through the lens of philosophy, spirituality, sociology, and psychology.

Music helps her relax and writing helps her make thought-connections. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Sign up Now. Author Sana Gupta Sana Gupta has always beeninterested in too many things for her own good. Write A Comment Cancel Reply. Prior to Millau's record breaking bridge piers of meters, the history of these towering structures has been almost entirely in Europe outside of two U.

Before Kocher the tallest were the meter pier of Italy's Rago Viaduct. Before that California's Pit River Bridge had the tallest at meters. Before California's Pit River crossing, the tallest purely concrete and stone pier was on France's Fades Viaduct at Prior to Fades and Sitter the tallest bridge pier was the all steel Before Gokteik the tallest steel bridge pier was the central tower of the Kinzua Viaduct at 87 meters. Before Kinzua the Grandfrey Viaduct of Switzerland held the record with steel and stone piers In the Crumlin Viaduct was the tallest with purely steel piers 64 meters tall while the Sitter Viaduct had stone and iron piers of approximately 56 meters in height.

The Portage Viaduct had masonry and timber piers of 67 meters. Prior to Portage there were few true "piers" of great height, only stone aqueducts such as the Pont Roquefavour in France and the Ponte Delle Torri in Spoleto, Italy with structural heights of 82 meters.

Spain's Puente Nuevo or New Ronda Bridge also has a structural height in the meter height range though the masonry walls hug the sides of the gorge cliff more like a giant foundation then a true stand-alone pier or aqueduct. A view of the deck during the launching phase with visible deformations prior to the tower and cable stay erection.

The bending of the deck was calculated by the engineers before construction. Millau Viaduct From HighestBridges.