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How do cable-stayed bridges carry the weight of their main spans?
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bridge
The multiple-span Seto Great Bridge over the Inland Sea, linking Kojima, Honshu, with Sakaide, Shikoku, Japan.
Cable-stayed bridges support the weight of their main spans through a series of nearly straight, diagonal cables held in tension. These cables connect the bridge deck directly to one or more vertical towers.12
The towers play a critical role by transferring the forces exerted by the cables down to the foundations through vertical compression. Additionally, the tensile forces generated within the cables act upon the deck, placing it into horizontal compression. This structural arrangement allows the bridge to efficiently distribute loads across the towers and the deck structure.12