Millau Viaduct

The Millau Viaduct (French: Viaduc de Millau [vja.dyk də mi.jo]) is a multispan cable-stayed bridge completed in 2004 across the gorge valley of the Tarn near (west of) Millau in the Aveyron department in the Occitanie Region, in Southern France. The design team was led by engineer Michel Virlogeux and English architect Norman Foster. Until late 2025, it stood as the tallest bridge in the world for over two decades, having a structural height of 343 metres (1,125 ft).

The Millau Viaduct is part of the A75–A71 autoroute axis from Paris to Béziers and Montpellier. The cost of construction was approximately €394 million (£345 million). It was built over three years, formally inaugurated on 14 December 2004, and opened to traffic two days later on 16 December. The bridge has been consistently ranked as one of the greatest engineering achievements of modern times, and received the 2006 Outstanding Structure Award from the International Association for Bridge and Structural Engineering.

In the 1980s, high levels of road traffic near Millau in the Tarn valley were causing congestion, especially in the summer due to holiday traffic on the route from Paris to Spain. A method of bypassing Millau had long been considered, not only to ease the flow and reduce journey times for long-distance traffic, but also to improve the quality of access to Millau for its local businesses and residents. One of the solutions considered was the construction of a road bridge to span the river and gorge valley. The first plans for a bridge were discussed in 1987 by CETE, and by October 1991 the decision was made to build a high crossing of the Tarn by a structure of around 2,500 metres (8,200 ft) in length. During 1993–1994, the government consulted with seven architects and eight structural engineers. During 1995–1996, a second definition study was made by five associated architect groups and structural engineers. In January 1995, the government issued a declaration of public interest to solicit design approaches for a competition.

In July 1996 the jury decided in favour of a cable-stayed design with multiple spans, as proposed by the SODETEG consortium led by Michel Virlogeux, Norman Foster and Arcadis. The decision to proceed by grant of contract was made in May 1998; then in June 2000, the contest for the construction contract was launched, open to four consortia. In March 2001, Eiffage established the subsidiary Compagnie Eiffage du Viaduc de Millau (CEVM), and was declared winner of the contest and awarded the prime contract in August.

In initial studies, four potential options were examined:^{[citation needed]}

The fourth option was selected by ministerial decree on 28 June 1989. It envisioned two possibilities:

After long construction studies by the Ministry of Public Works, the low solution was abandoned because it would have intersected the water table, had a negative impact on the town, cost more, and lengthened the driving distance. The choice of the 'high' solution was decided by ministerial decree on 29 October 1991.

After the choice of the high viaduct, five teams of architects and researchers worked on a technical solution. The concept and design for the bridge was devised by French designer and structural engineer Michel Virlogeux. He worked with the Dutch engineering firm Arcadis, responsible for the structural engineering of the bridge.