Would you drive on this road? **update..webcam view**

[phorsenuf]

 

[Tina]

No thanks!!

 

[wdwmom2]

That's beautiful. Were is it???? I would really have to psych myself up first, but yes, I would drive over it.

 

[huckster]

Not on a windy day ! ok , ok.. not any day

 

[Servants of Evan]

Oh yeah. I'd really love it if no police were around and I could floor it!

 

[AllyandJack]

Not with the way people around here drive!

 

[phorsenuf]

That's beautiful. Were is it???? I would really have to psych myself up first, but yes, I would drive over it.

I'm not sure, my dad sent me the picture saying it was the only road left to get to Florida. He knows I hate to fly and bridges scare the bejeebies out of me. Such a smart....
Anyways, in the properties it says this; Millau_Viaduct_France, so I'm guessing somewhere in France.

 

[phorsenuf]

This Cable-Stayed Bridge Project is on schedule to be completed January 2005. (39 month construction contract). This project is being financed privately. This project has the highest bridge piers in world. Thus the title of the Highest Bridge in the World. The tallest will be 240 meters high. Overall height an outstanding 336.4 meters. This project will consist of seven separate cable-stays.




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Bridges are often considered to belong to the engineer's realm rather than the architect's. But the architecture of infrastructure has a powerful impact on the environment. The Millau Viaduct, designed in collaboration with engineers, illustrates how the architect can play an integral role in bridge design.

Located in southern France, the bridge will connect the motorway from Paris to Barcelona at the point where it is interrupted by the River Tarn, which runs through a wide gorge between two plateaus. A reading of the topography suggested two possible approaches: to cross the river, the geological generator of the landscape; or there was the challenge of spanning the 2.5 kilometers from one plateau to the other in the most economical manner.

The structural solution follows from the latter philosophical standpoint. The bridge has the optimum span between cable-stayed columns. It is delicate, transparent, and uses the minimum material, which makes it less costly to construct. Each of its sections spans 350 meters and its columns range in height from 75 meters to 235 meters - higher than the Eiffel Tower - with the masts rising a further 90 meters 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 A-frame above deck level. This structure creates a dramatic silhouette - and crucially it makes the minimum intervention in the landscape.


Construction Date: 2001
Completion Date: 2005
Statistics: Length: 2.5 km
Height: 280 m

 

[ktulu]

heck ya! I'd rather drive down the side of the mountain and back up (4-lo all the way!)

I saw a show on them building the bridge. They built the road, and then slid it into place. Very interesting on how they did it.

darren

 

[INDISMOM]

NO WAY! I am scared of bridges -- good thing I live the the midwest! Last time we drove to Florida, we had to make sure DH was driving when we had to drive over the Ohio River. Even just looking at that picture make me break out in a cold sweat!

 

[Viking]

This bridge is located in France and has been in operation about a year already. It was built by the Eiffel-Company - Yes, that EIFFEL-company, whose founder built the famous tower in Paris and was also involved in the construction of Lady Liberty.

Her is a link to The Bridge

And yes, I would love to drive across it. I even own the perfect vehicle for it: A nice French convertible

 

[Pixiedust34]

 

[liamsaunt]

I think it is beautiful, but I would prefer to be a passenger, rather than the driver. I wonder how high the guardrails are?

 

[phisigprincess]

Living in Pittsburgh where it seems like you can't go a mile without crossing a bridge, bridges don't scare me, but that one might be too much!! WHERE ARE THE SIDES?!?!? I'd like bigger sides on it.

 

[mom2boys]

Sure. I think the picture's angle is much worse than what you would expeirence actually driving over the bridge.

After driving across a one-lane bridge that shares the road with a railroad track, I could do it. That bridge was a single car/train width. There were no signals or gates. I had to make an 90 degree right hand turn up a steep hill onto the bridge. Since it was in New Zealand, I felt like I was driving on the wrong side of the road. This is the only time I have ever hesitated to drive across a bridge. Let me tell, I did floor it. Half way across, I realized that my line of vision at that point was a couple of miles & there was no train in sight.

 

[phorsenuf]

Here's a webcam of the bridge


http://www.viaducdemillaueiffage.com/webcam/index.html

 

[chris1gill]

Uh, NO!!!

You'd have to sedate me before trying to get me across that bridge... I seriously do not like bridges to begin with, this isn't just any bridge, this is a HIGH, GIGANTIC BRIDGE!!! NO WAY!