Bridges are in incredible asset to the engineering world, they have influenced the development of cultures, surroundings and lives throughout different countries. A bridge makes a large part of famous skylines in the world, it is almost impossible to imagine San Francisco without the Golden Gate Bridge, or Manhattan without Brooklyn Bridge. Structures such as these have shaped our lives, aided commerce and urban development. Here in this article we shall look at some of the biggest and famous bridges in the world, all to which we owe to infrastructure engineering.

Located in the United Kingdom is a well known bridge known as the Clifton Suspension Bridge. Completed in 1864 this stunning bridge spans across the Avon Gorge and is as famous to Bristol as the Eiffel Tower is to Paris. Dedicated maintenance of this structure has ensured that the bridge has never closed and now carries an impressive four million cars a year. It is easy to forget that this infrastructure engineering was carried out in the 1830s, created in the 1860's and initially intended for horse drawn traffic. Today this amazing bridge is protected by a trust set up by the parliament in 1952, highlighting the importance of this structure to society.

Another impressive feat of infrastructure engineering is the recognized Brooklyn Bridge that was designed by the inventor of wire cable John. A Roebling. Brooklyn Bridge is a renowned cultural icon that was designed in 1867; a smaller prototype of the bridge was made over the Ohio River in Cincinnati. The gothic towers on the bridge are made entirely of granite and the roadway platform hung on two inch diameter steel suspenders that are strung from two pairs of cables. This type of project demonstrates how much of an influence infrastructure engineering is on culture and how we perceive certain parts of the world.

Finally, another celebrated bridge is the Le Ponte De Normandie that is located in Le Havre, France. The design of this prominent cable bridge was by Michel Virlogeu. The infrastructure engineering of this structure was affected by three factors, anchorages of a suspension bridge would have been too heavy and the bridge would have sunk into the soft river bed. The structure was only required to support a light traffic load and the bridge was designed to motivate nationalistic pride. All of these factors were taken into consideration and why the bridge ended up becoming world's longest cable-stayed bridge.

It isn't often recognised how important design, engineering and infrastructure engineering is on society. Bridges, tunnels and other massive projects all shape locations and can end up really benefiting an area for various reasons, not just for their original function.

Dominic Donaldson is an expert in the engineering industry.
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