Millau Viaduct Viaduc de Millau (French) | |
|---|---|
 A view of the Millau Viaduct in 2005. | |
| Coordinates | 44°04′46″N 03°01′20″E / 44.07944°N 3.02222°E |
| Carries | 4 lanes of the A75 autoroute |
| Crosses | Gorge valley of the river Tarn |
| Locale | Millau-Creissels, Aveyron, France |
| Official name | Viaduc de Millau |
| Maintained by | Compagnie Eiffage du Viaduc de Millau[1] |
| Characteristics | |
| Design | Multiple-span cable-stayed viaduct motorway bridge[1] |
| Material | Concrete, steel |
| Total length | 2,460 m (8,070 ft)[1] |
| Width | 32.05 m (105.2 ft)[1] |
| Height | 343 m (1,125 ft) (max pylon above ground)[1][2] |
| Longest span | 342 m (1,122 ft)[1] |
| No. of spans | 204 m (669 ft), 6×342 m (1,122 ft), 204 m (669 ft)[1] |
| Clearance below | 270 m (890 ft)[1][3] |
| Design life | 120 years |
| History | |
| Designer | Dr Michel Virlogeux, structural engineer[1] |
| Constructed by | Compagnie Eiffage du Viaduc de Millau[1][2][3][4] |
| Construction start | 16 October 2001[1] |
| Construction cost | €394 million[2] |
| Opened | 16 December 2004, at 9:00[1] |
| Inaugurated | 14 December 2004[1] |
| Statistics | |
| Toll | from €8.30 |
| Location | |
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The Millau Viaduct (French: Viaduc de Millau, IPA: [vja.dyk də mi.jo]) is a multispan cable-stayed bridge completed in 2004 across the gorge valley of the Tarn near (west of) Millau in the Aveyron department in the Occitanie Region, in Southern France. The design team was led by engineer Michel Virlogeux and English architect Norman Foster.[2][3][4] As of October 2023,[update] it is the tallest bridge in the world, having a structural height of 343 metres (1,125 ft).[1]
The Millau Viaduct is part of the A75[4]–A71 autoroute axis from Paris to Béziers and Montpellier. The cost of construction was approximately €394 million (US$424 million).[2] It was built over three years, formally inaugurated on 14 December 2004,[1][2] and opened to traffic two days later on 16 December.[5] The bridge has been consistently ranked as one of the greatest engineering achievements of modern times, and received the 2006 Outstanding Structure Award from the International Association for Bridge and Structural Engineering.[6][7][8][9]
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Millau Viaduct at Structurae. Retrieved 12 September 2018.
- ^ a b c d e f "France shows off tallest bridge". BBC News Online. 14 December 2004. Retrieved 2 May 2017.
- ^ a b c "France 'completes' tallest bridge". news.BBC.co.uk. BBC News. 29 May 2004. Retrieved 2 May 2017.
- ^ a b c Chris Bockman (4 November 2003). "France builds world's tallest bridge". BBC News Online. Millau. Retrieved 2 May 2017.
- ^ "Millau Viaduct - construction". LeViaducdeMillau.com. Archived from the original on 8 July 2013. Retrieved 14 June 2013.
- ^ "The 10 greatest engineering feats of the decade". ConstructionWeekOnline.com. 12 April 2010. Retrieved 7 March 2013.
- ^ "10 greatest modern day engineering marvels of the world". WonderfulEngineering.com. 8 May 2014. Retrieved 2 July 2016.
- ^ "Top 10 modern engineering marvels in the world". IveyEngineering.com. 10 November 2011. Retrieved 2 July 2016.
- ^ "Millau Viaduct, France". iabse.org. 13 September 2006. Archived from the original on 1 July 2007. Retrieved 27 December 2008.
