Three-way bridge

A three-way bridge (or tri-bridge) is a bridge with three distinct and separate spans, where one end of each span meets at a common point near the centre of the bridge. Unlike other bridges which have two entry-exit points, three-way bridges have three entry-exit points. For this reason, three-way bridges are not to be confused with commonly found road bridges which carry vehicles in one direction from one entry point, and then bifurcate into two other one-way bridges.^[1]

Three-way bridges are located throughout the world, though they are rare. Some are as small as a footbridge, while others are multi-lane roadways.

Three-way bridges are often referred to as "T-bridges" or "Y-bridges", due to their shape when viewed from above. Three cities in Michigan each have a three-way bridge named "The Tridge", combining "tri" and "bridge".^[1]

The unique shape of a three-way bridge makes it easy to identify from an airplane. Pilot Amelia Earhart described Zanesville, Ohio as "the most recognizable city in the country" because of its Y-shaped bridge,^[2] and the pilots of Enola Gay aimed for Hiroshima's T-shaped Aioi Bridge when they dropped the atom bomb.^[3]

Locations and features

Bridge name	Location	Coordinates	Description	Image
Aioi Bridge	Hiroshima, Japan	34°23′47″N 132°27′09″E / 34.3964°N 132.4526°E	Vehicle and pedestrian T-bridge.
Bergues Bridge (fr:Pont des Bergues)	Geneva, Switzerland	46°12′21″N 6°08′49″E / 46.20593°N 6.147054°E	Pedestrian Y-bridge over the Rhône.
BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee building footbridge	Chattanooga, Tennessee, United States	35°03′08″N 85°19′05″W / 35.05223°N 85.31798°W	T-shaped footbridge.
Bridge With 3 Branches (Le pont à 3 branches)	Pont-de-Veyle, France	46°15′59″N 4°52′45″E / 46.266467°N 4.879134°E	Pedestrian Y-bridge over the Veyle.
Bridge With Three Entrances (Ponte das Três Entradas)	Oliveira do Hospital Municipality, Portugal	40°18′24″N 7°52′16″W / 40.306739°N 7.871198°W	Vehicle and pedestrian Y-bridge.
Butterfly Bridge	Copenhagen, Denmark	55°40′40″N 12°35′56″E / 55.677694°N 12.598943°E	Pedestrian Y-bridge. Two of the bridge spans may open for passing sailboats. When both spans open at the same time the bridge resembles a butterfly.[4]
Calatrava Bridge	Petah Tikva, Israel	32°05′30″N 34°51′59″E / 32.091803°N 34.86641°E	Y-shaped footbridge designed by Santiago Calatrava.
Camp Evergreen Girl Scouts Camp bridge	Cowlitz County, Washington, United States	46°12′40″N 123°12′24″W / 46.211098°N 123.206755°W	Pedestrian Y-bridge over Mill Creek.
Chu Y Bridge	Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam	10°45′03″N 106°41′01″E / 10.750946°N 106.683653°E	Vehicle and pedestrian Y-bridge built in 1937.[5]
Colin Glen Forest Park Tri-Bridge	Dunmurry, Northern Ireland	54°34′38″N 6°02′04″W / 54.577218°N 6.034307°W	Y-shaped footbridge.
Eco-Viikki Three Way Bridge	Helsinki, Finland	60°13′34″N 25°02′03″E / 60.226107°N 25.034079°E	Pedestrian Y-bridge.
Fogelsangh State Three Way Bridge	Veenklooster, Netherlands	53°15′48″N 6°06′35″E / 53.263396°N 6.109713°E	Pedestrian Y-bridge.
Galena Y-Bridge	Galena, Missouri, United States	36°48′19″N 93°27′40″W / 36.805393°N 93.460998°W	Y-shaped bridge historically used for vehicle traffic, now a footbridge.
Jasenovac Tri-Bridge	Between Jasenovac, Sisak-Moslavina County, Slavonia and Uštica, Bosnia and Herzegovina	45°16′05″N 16°55′01″E / 45.267997°N 16.916949°E	Vehicle and pedestrian Y-bridge originally built in 1973, destroyed in 1991, then re-built in 2005.[6]
Kang Ding Tri-Bridge	Kang Ding Xian, Garzê Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, China	30°03′21″N 101°57′55″E / 30.05592°N 101.965254°E	Pedestrian Y-bridge.
Kikko Bridge	Aoyamakogen Country Club, Mie Prefecture, Japan	34°42′01″N 136°24′04″E / 34.700234°N 136.401003°E	Y-shaped footbridge built in 1991.[5]
Lune Millennium Bridge	Lancaster, Lancashire, England	54°03′08″N 2°48′09″W / 54.052191°N 2.802525°W	Y-shaped footbridge.
Louisa/Fort Gay Tri-Bridge	Between Fort Gay, West Virginia and Louisa, Kentucky, United States	38°06′59″N 82°35′59″W / 38.11632°N 82.599821°W	Vehicle and pedestrian T-bridge opened in 1906.[6]
Madrid Rio Y Bridge	Madrid, Spain	40°24′18″N 3°43′22″W / 40.405114°N 3.722811°W	Y-shaped footbridge over Manzanares River.
Malvina Footbridge	Malvina, Mississippi, United States	33°51′08″N 90°55′09″W / 33.852288°N 90.919145°W	Wooden vehicle and pedestrian T-bridge built in the late 1920s, and demolished in 1972.[7]
Mangakahia Twin Bridges	Nukutawhiti, New Zealand	35°37′26″S 173°50′48″E / 35.623797°S 173.846626°E	Vehicle and pedestrian T-bridge over Mangakahia River.
Margaret Bridge	Budapest, Hungary	47°30′53″N 19°02′37″E / 47.514722°N 19.043611°E	Vehicle and pedestrian Y-bridge.
nl:Noabers Badde, also called Mercedesbrug	Veelerveen, Netherlands	53°03′12″N 7°07′39″E / 53.053361°N 7.127363°E	Pedestrian Y-bridge built in 1989 at the convergence of the Mussel, Diamonds, and During canals.[8]
Overseas Highway	Pigeon Key, Florida,United States	24°42′15″N 81°09′22″W / 24.704289°N 81.155974°W	Partially abandoned vehicle and pedestrian T-bridge.
Pierre Corneille Bridge (fr:Pont Pierre-Corneille)	Rouen, France	49°26′09″N 1°05′44″E / 49.435948°N 1.095497°E	Vehicle and pedestrian T-bridge over the Seine.
Raehills Three-Way Footbridge	Lockerbie, Scotland	55°13′38″N 3°27′55″W / 55.227105°N 3.465388°W	Y-shaped footbridge built in the late 1800s.[9]
Sancha Zijin Bridge/Hama Bridge	Xingtai, Hebei, China	37°31′19″N 114°29′08″E / 37.522016°N 114.485609°E	Vehicle and pedestrian stone Y-bridge built in 1691.[10]
Staniastate footbridge	Staniastate, Oentsjerk, Netherlands	53°15′25″N 5°53′50″E / 53.257006°N 5.897111°E	Y-shaped footbridge.
Strömsborgsbron	Gamla stan, Sweden	59°19′38″N 18°03′51″E / 59.327304°N 18.064282°E	Vehicle and pedestrian T-bridge.
Thetford Footbridge	Thetford, England	52°24′48″N 0°44′49″E / 52.413277°N 0.746904°E	Y-shaped footbridge.
Three-Way Bridge	Lyons Falls, New York, United States	43°37′01″N 75°21′26″W / 43.616879°N 75.357202°W	Vehicle and pedestrian wooden T-bridge opened in 1849, replaced with steel in 1916, and demolished in 1965.[11]
Treponti	Comacchio, Italy	44°41′35″N 12°11′00″E / 44.692984°N 12.18329°E	Five-way stone footbridge at the intersection of five canals, built in 1634.[6]
The Tridge (Brighton)	Brighton, Michigan, United States	42°31′50″N 83°46′59″W / 42.530473°N 83.783022°W	Y-shaped footbridge.[12]
The Tridge (Midland)	Midland, Michigan, United States	43°36′40″N 84°14′55″W / 43.611052°N 84.248689°W	Y-shaped footbridge.
The Tridge (Ypsilanti)	Ypsilanti, Michigan, United States	42°14′44″N 83°36′42″W / 42.24561°N 83.6116°W	Y-shaped footbridge.
Trinity Bridge (Crowland)	Crowland, Lincolnshire, England	52°40′33″N 0°10′06″W / 52.6757°N 0.168281°W	Y-shaped stone footbridge.
Trinity Bridge (Greater Manchester)	Greater Manchester, England	53°28′58″N 2°15′04″W / 53.482717°N 2.251098°W	Y-shaped footbridge over River Irwell, designed by Santiago Calatrava.
Vijversburg Estate Tri-Bridge	Tytsjerk, Netherlands	53°13′01″N 5°54′28″E / 53.217052°N 5.907743°E	Y-shaped footbridge.
Vines Mansion Bridge	Loganville, Georgia, United States	33°51′43″N 83°55′25″W / 33.862035°N 83.923614°W	Y-shaped footbridge.
Ypsilon Bridge	Drammen, Norway	59°44′40″N 10°11′43″E / 59.744396°N 10.195313°E	Y-shaped footbridge.
Zanesville Y-Bridge	Zanesville, Ohio, United States	39°56′26″N 82°00′52″W / 39.940417°N 82.014306°W	Vehicle and pedestrian Y-bridge.

References

1. "The Tridge – Michigan's Three Way Bridge". Kuriositas. January 2, 2012.
2. "Y Bridge". Zanesville-Muskingum County Visitors Bureau. Retrieved September 10, 2016.
3. "Aioi Bridge". Hiroshima & Nagasaki Remembered. Retrieved September 10, 2016.
4. "Butterfly Bridge / Dietmar Feichtinger Architectes". ArchDaily. April 19, 2015.
5. "Beautiful Tri-Bridges Around the World". Emorfes. October 21, 2010.
6. "Tri-Bridges Around the World". November 3, 2012.
7. "Phalia / Malvina" (PDF). Msgw.org. Retrieved September 10, 2016.
8. "Noabers Badde". Structure. Retrieved September 10, 2016.
9. "Raehills, Wallace's Loup, Footbridge". Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland. Retrieved September 10, 2016.
10. "Sancha Zijin Bridge aka Hama Bridge". Robert Cortright. Retrieved September 10, 2016.
11. "Three-Way Bridge". Village of Lyons Falls. Retrieved September 10, 2016.
12. "Brighton Downtown Development Authority - Standard Streetscape Details" (PDF). City of Brighton. July 2006.