These bridges are built using horizontal beams supported on only one end. Most of these bridges use a pair of continuous spans that extend from opposite sides of the supporting piers to meet at the center of the obstacle the bridge crosses. This bridge type depends on counterbalances which are weights used to balance another weight. They consist of two or more arms that equally balance each other, almost like a perfectly balanced see-saw.

This type of bridge carries load outward along the curve of the arch to supports at each end. The weight of the bridge and the load it carries is transferred to the supports at either end.

In this type of bridge, the bridge is held up by cables connected directly to the bridge deck and tower. However, with this type of bridge, less cable is required and the towers holding the cables are proportionately shorter than that of the bridge of similar type.

This type of bridge is a bridge whose load-bearing superstructure is composed of a structure of connected elements forming triangular units. The connected elements (typically straight) may be stressed from tension, compression, or sometimes both in response to dynamic loads. These bridge types are one of the oldest types of modern bridges.

In this type of bridge, cables are draped between towers and have vertical cables that connect the draped cable to the road deck. The towers are constructed with footings that are attached to caissons. The caissons are implanted deep into the ground beneath the floor of a lake or river. The weight is transferred by the cables to the towers, which then in turn transfers the weight to the ground. These bridges are thought to "bridge the unbridgeable".

This type of bridge is a hybrid design that is a combination of a concrete cable stressed girder bridge and a cable stayed bridge. This bridge type lends itself to longer spans than a conventional girder bridge. This bridge type is similar to a cable stayed bridge in its use of towers and external cables to support the bridge deck superstructure but differs in its reliance on shorter towers and shallow cable angles than a conventional cable stayed bridge.