Bridging divides

The architectural excellence of these bridges expresses their creators' abstract ideas in a language of concrete and steel. Knowing which bridge to cross and which to burn was never easier. Here's shining a spotlight on their anatomy.

1. Henderson Waves Bridge, Singapore: At times, it pays to think straight. These are so not those times! The wavy structure of this 74-metre-long pedestrian bridge makes it a signature of post-modern architecture. Undulating curved steel ribs rise alternately over and under the deck. Beneath every upward curve sits an alcove which functions as a shelter, with benches. Slats of balau wood, an all-weather yellow timber grown in southeast Asia, are used all across the decking. The bridge is illuminated with LED lamps every night from 7 pm to 2 am. At 36 m above Henderson Road, this is the highest pedestrian bridge in Singapore, and offers a panoramic view of the city skyline.

2. Rolling Bridge, London: For those disappointed that London Bridge never really fell down, here is one that curls into itself, morphing from a footbridge into a circular sculpture that sits on the bank of the Grand Union Canal in Paddington Basis, in central London. Unlike regular movable canal bridges that lift or break up to allow boats to pass through, this rolling bridge curls up-by way of hydraulics-into itself every Friday at noon. The 12-metre-long bridge is made of eight steel sections laid with dark timber decking.

3. Chengyang Wind and Rain Bridge, China: Cultural bridges make the world a smaller place; bridges of culture help the process along. There are definite lessons to be learnt from the Dong ethnic community in south west China, who created this bridge in the Guangxi province more than a hundred years ago without a single nail or rivet. The 78-metre bridge boasts five four-storeyed, pagoda-like pavilions with cyan tiles and white eaves that resemble outstretched wings. Pilaster, tile brims and carved flowers add to the appeal. The surface of the bridge is paved with wooden boards and both sides are inlaid with railings. A cultural relic and a paradigm for sustainable architecture in one location!

4. Pont Gustave-Flaubert, France: From the burning of Joan of Arc in 1431 to the testing of the first-ever submarine Nautilus in 1800, Rouen's significance goes well beyond its position as France's biggest port. An able representative of this historic city, at times the Pont Gustave-Flaubert acts as a bypass to the city's south. At other times, it facilitates the easy passage of the largest of cruise liners, by letting huge vertical lifts hoist its main ramp up 180 ft in just 12 minutes. Butterfly-shaped, 450-ton steel structures atop the two bridge towers support the pulleys of the lift system on three parallel frames. Named after the novelist Gustave Flaubert, this is the last crossing before the Seine flows into the sea.

5. Leonardo Bridge, Norway: In 1502, Leonardo da Vinci designed a bridge with a span of 240 metre as part of a civil engineering project for Sultan Bajazet II of Constantinople. The artist wanted the bridge to span the Golden Horn, at the mouth of the Bosphorus. The bridge was never built. Norwegian painter and public art creator Vebjrn Sand saw the drawing and a model of the bridge in 1996, and decided to build such a bridge on every continent. The Leonardo Bridge, which serves as a pedestrian crossing over European route E18 in s, Norway is the first.

6. J. K. Bridge, Brazil: There is a certain romantic realism you feel sitting in a gondola passing beneath an arch bridge in Venice. This arch bridge is a trifle different. The 1,200-metre monument of elegance stands on Lake Paranoa in Brasilia. The decks are suspended by steel cables that alternate at each side of the deck, forming an interlace of sorts. The 200-ft-tall asymmetrical steel arches supporting the deck give it great visual fluidity. Named after former Brazilian president Juscelino Kubitschek, the bridge aims to live up to Brasilia's majestic scale as a city. Architect Alexandre Chan received the prestigious Gustav Lindenthal Medal for this landmark bridge in 2003.