While Leonardo da Vinci’s bridge design has never been implemented on the scale he imagined, key concepts in his design live on in many modern-day architectural marvels, including the Sydney Harbor Bridge and the Lupu Bridge pictured here. The Lupu Bridge in Shanghai, opened in 2003, spans the Huangpu River. It is built with a tied-arch design, meaning that both ends are “tied” by the deck, which lessens the horizontal force of the arches on the bases. The bridge is also a through arch bridge, meaning that some of the arch was below the deck, while the rest of the arch is above the deck. The parabolic shape, as proposed by da Vinci in his notebook, remains especially advantageous because it equally distributes weight along the entire length. With the tied deck, this allows for the bridge to support enormous amounts of weight even in non-ideal ground conditions, such as the soft soil in Shanghai. Besides facilitating transportation, the bridge also serves as a tourist attraction; visitors can climb to the top of the arch for panoramic views of the city.

Sources:

Atalay, B. (2013, February 3). LEONARDO’S BRIDGE: Part 3. “Vebjørn Sand and Variations on a Theme by Leonardo”. Retrieved May 13, 2019, from https://blog.nationalgeographic.org/2013/02/03/leonardos-bridge-part-3-vebjrn-sand-and-variations-on-a-theme-by-leonardo/

[Bridge of Lupu over the Huangpu river in Shanghai (China)]. (2012, August 5). Retrieved May 15, 2019, from https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lupu_Bridge,_Huangpu_River.JPG

The Lupu Bridge, Shanghai, China. (n.d.). Retrieved May 15, 2019, from https://www.iabse.org/IABSE/association/Award_files/Outstanding_Structure_Award/The_Lupu_Bridge__Shanghai__China.aspx

Tied-Arch Bridge Facts, History, and Examples. (2019). Retrieved May 15, 2019, from http://www.historyofbridges.com/facts-about-bridges/tied-arch-bridge/