Viaduct with larger spans, typically lack sufficient horizontal and vertical clearance for large ships. See the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel. The Millau Viaduct is a cable-stayed road-bridge that spans the valley of the river Tarn near Millau in southern France. Designed by the French bridge engineer Michel Virlogeux, in collaboration with architect Norman Robert Foster, it is the tallest vehicular bridge in the world, with one pier's summit at 343 metres (1,125 ft)—slightly taller than the Eiffel Tower and only 38 m (125 ft) shorter than the Empire State Building. It was formally dedicated on 14 December 2004 and opened to traffic
Millau Viaduct and structural engineer Dr Michel Virlogeux. He worked with the Dutch engineering firm ARCADIS, responsible for the structural engineering of the bridge. The 'high solution' required the construction of a viaduct. From 1991 to 1993, the structures division of Sétra, directed by Michel Virlogeux, carried out preliminary studies, and examined the feasibility of a single structure spanning the valley. Taking into account technical, architectural, and financial issues, the Administration of Roads opened the question for competition among structural engineers and architects to widen the search for realistic designs. By July 1993, seventeen structural engineers and thirty-eight architects applied as candidates