Bridge and Tunnel Construction Contractors Key Terms

Browse the different types of bridges and tunnels

By Kristan Hart

Bridges and tunnels provide transportation to locations where vehicles once couldn't go. If you wanted to travel to the other side of a mountain, or across a river or stream, in the past, you would have to find alternate forms of transportation. However, current forms of bridges and tunnels make it easy to get where you need to go. To work with bridge and tunnel construction contractors, you should understand the various types of bridges and tunnels that they can design.

Mine tunnels, public works tunnels, transportation tunnels

There are three main types of tunnels that construction contractors will work with: mine tunnels, public works tunnels and transportation tunnels. Mine tunnels are designed for the extraction of mineral and metal deposits from the earth. Public works tunnels carry utilities like gas, water and sewer lines over long distances underground. Transportation tunnels allow for vehicles or train systems to travel underground for part or all of the trip.
Try: HowStuffWorks explains the different types of tunnels that bridge and tunnel construction contractors should know.

Transportation Research Board

The Transportation Research Board helps lead the way in the innovation and progress of the transportation industry. They promote research and information exchange among industry professionals to further develop bridges, tunnels and other transportation modalities.
Try: Read the mission of the Transportation Research Board on its website.

Suspension bridge

A common type of bridge built by bridge and tunnel construction contractors is the suspension bridge. The bridge's roadway suspends from smaller cables that all attach to a master cable that runs the length of the bridge.
Try: You can read details about a suspension bridge at the wiseGEEK website.

Cable stayed bridge

A cable stayed bridge looks similar to a suspension bridge, however, a cable stayed bridge requires the towers to bear the weight of the roadway connected to the cables.
Try: The NOVA page at PBS.org explains cable stayed bridges.

Truss

Trusses on a bridge help develop the support and structure of the bridge. Trusses act as the skeleton of the bridge, providing the appropriate amount of tension and compression to make the bridge sturdy.
Try: The Matsuo Bridge Co. offers details about a truss on a bridge and the purpose that it serves.

Beam bridges

Beam bridges are the simplest type of bridge that a bridge and tunnel construction contractor will work with. The beam crosses the bridge to make the roadway or walkway; that beam can be in one piece or it can be fused together with different pieces.
Try: The Design Technology Department explains beam bridges.