Relier Pairs BridgesVersion en ligne for architects and engineers par Pauline Borg 1 Everything below the bridge roadway. This supports the superstructure. It transfers the load from the superstructure to the soil or rock below. Piers and abutments are part of this 2 The simplest kind of bridge, with a straight beam crossing a gap. Because this kind of bridge is not particularly strong, a single beam cannot cross a wide gap. 3 abutment 4 caisson 5 A structure that carries water from one place to another, usually elevated, traditionally built of stone. 6 suspension bridge 7 span 8 Limitations or conditions that a design must satisfy. For example, a bridge might need to be at least a certain height, cost no more than a certain amount, and be safe in an earthquake that measures 7.0 on the Richter scale. The part of a bridge or length of the bridge deck between supports. substructure The structure at each end of a bridge that supports the ends and resists the outward pressing forces of, for example, an arch bridge. It is often built of stone or concrete. A type of bridge in which the bridge deck is hung from cables that are strung across a gap over towers. Vertical cables hang from these cables to support the bridge deck. constraints A large chamber, watertight but open at the bottom, which is filled with compressed air and lowered into a body of water to allow construction work at the water’s bottom. beam bridge aqueduct