Baluarte Bridge saddles in the pylons to form 152 suspenders in a two plane semi-fan layout. The tallest intermediate pier, P9, is high. It crosses a gorge in the Sierra Madre Occidental mountains with a clearance of below the deck, substantially taller than the Eiffel Tower. Its clearance is higher than that of the previous record-holder, France's Millau Viaduct, which has a clearance of . The bridge's central span, long, is also the longest cable-stayed span in North America, longer than that of the John James Audubon Bridge in St. Francisville, Louisiana. Construction on the bridge began on 21 February 2008. The
Millau of the Tarn and Dourbie about 340 m altitude. The territory surrounding the town of Millau is characterized by livestock production and the maintaining of natural grasslands, fields and temporary pastures. It also consists of a multitude of gorges, ravines and defiles which are the defining characteristic of this country. These predominantly agricultural rural areas like the rest of this fragile region, are protected by the Regional Natural Park of Grands Causses. The flora in the area has more than 2000 species. There is a variety of asparagus with triple leaves, Montpellier aphyllanthe, honeysuckle from the Etruria region of Italy.