Bridge pier

A bridge pier is a vertical support between the ends of a bridge that transfers loads from the superstructure into the ground or riverbed.

Bridge: A structure that carries a road, railway, or other route across an obstacle. A pier is one of the supports within this broader structure.
Pier cap: The upper member of a pier that supports bridge bearings or girders. It collects loads from the superstructure and distributes them to the pier shaft.
Trestle: A bridge or elevated structure supported by a repeated framework of piers or towers. Trestles use a sequence of supports to carry long, often elevated routes.
Bridge tower: A tall support that carries the cables of a suspension or cable-stayed bridge. Towers anchor cable systems, unlike ordinary piers that directly support spans.
Lake Pontchartrain Causeway: A pair of parallel bridges crossing Lake Pontchartrain in Louisiana. Its long spans rest on thousands of repetitive concrete supports.
Bridge abutment: An end support that transfers bridge loads to the ground and retains the approach embankment. Abutments support the ends; piers support spans between them.
Pier shaft: The vertical body of a bridge pier between its cap and foundation. It carries forces downward from the pier cap.
Viaduct: A long bridge, typically with multiple spans, that carries a route across a valley or other terrain. Its repeated spans commonly rest on a line of piers.
Arch bridge: A bridge whose curved arch carries loads primarily through compression to its supports. An arch can cross an opening without intermediate piers beneath its span.
Brooklyn Bridge: A suspension bridge spanning the East River between Manhattan and Brooklyn in New York City. Its masonry towers stand on substantial foundations in the river.

Linked from 11 pages