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Viaduct
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{{Short description|Multiple-span bridge crossing an extended lower area}} {{Use dmy dates|date=June 2021}} {{BridgeTypePix |type_name=Viaduct |image=Laighmilton1.JPG |image_title=The 1812 [[Laigh Milton Viaduct]] in Ayrshire β the oldest surviving railway bridge in Scotland |sibling_names=[[Aqueduct (bridge)|Aqueduct]] |descendent_names=None |ancestor_names=[[Trestle bridge]], [[box girder bridge]]|carries=[[Controlled-access highway|Expressways]], highways, streets, railways |span_range=Short (multiple) |material=[[reinforced concrete]], [[prestressed concrete]], [[masonry]] |movable=No |design=medium |falsework=available for use, since viaducts are all composed of low bridges. }} A '''viaduct''' is a specific type of [[bridge]] that consists of a series of arches, [[Pier (bridge structure)|pier]]s or [[column]]s supporting a long elevated railway or road. Typically a viaduct connects two points of roughly equal elevation, allowing direct [[overpass]] across a wide valley, road, river, or other low-lying [[terrain]] features and obstacles.<ref name="oxf">{{cite web|url=https://www.oed.com/|title=viaduct β Definition of viaduct in English by Oxford English Dictionary|website=OED|access-date=21 September 2020}}</ref><ref name="mer-web">{{cite web|url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/viaduct|title=Definition of VIADUCT|website=www.merriam-webster.com|access-date=27 March 2018}}</ref> The term ''viaduct'' is derived from the [[Latin]] ''via'' meaning "road", and ''ducere'' meaning "to lead". It is a 19th-century derivation from an [[analogy]] with [[Ancient Rome|ancient Roman]] [[aqueduct (bridge)|aqueducts]].<ref name="oxf"/> Like the [[Roman aqueduct]]s, many early viaducts comprised a series of arches of roughly equal length.
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