The Maria Pia bridge (Ponte Maria Pia) is a railway bridge built in 1877 by Gustave Eiffel in Porto, Portugal. Built of wrought iron, its two-hinged crescent arch carries the railway line to Lisbon for 353m across the River Douro at a height of 60m. Eiffel's design was the least expensive of eight entries into an 1875 competition, being 31% less than the next lowest priced. The bridge was built to avoid a 12 km detour, and started on 5 January 1876 and completed on 4 November 1877. At that time its span of 160m was the longest arch bridge in the world, the previous record holder, at 156m, being the Eads Bridge over the Mississippi at St Louis. The bridge was opened by the king of Portugal and named after his queen Maria Pia.

Maria Pia Bridge

The Maria Pia bridge (Ponte Maria Pia) is a railway bridge built in 1877 by Gustave Eiffel in Porto,…

An illustration of a cross section of a concrete pier for a railway bridge with dimensions labeled. Illustration could be used to calculate volume and area of figures.

Cross Section of Concrete Pier for Railway bridge

An illustration of a cross section of a concrete pier for a railway bridge with dimensions labeled.…

A railway bridge and three-story semicircular arch bridge built from 1855. The Viaduct of Chaumont is a railway bridge that connects Paris to Basel. It stands on the Marne River in Chaumont, a commune in France.

Viaduct of Chaumont

A railway bridge and three-story semicircular arch bridge built from 1855. The Viaduct of Chaumont is…