Hinged arch bridge

Hinges at the springing point prevent bending moments from being transferred to the bridge abutments.

[2] In a two-hinged arch bridge no bending moments are transferred to the abutments, due to the presence of the hinge.

[3] Single-hinged arch bridges, with a hinge only at the crown, were also built though in relatively small numbers compared to the other types.

Post-war, the advances in calculation methods allowed broad use of statically indeterminate schemes.

In the end of the 20th century three-hinged arches made a comeback associated with the uses of engineered wood ("glulam") in bridge construction:[7] the glulam construction have to be pre-fabricated, using three-hinged design naturally divides the arch into two halves that are easier to transport.

[8] While in steel arches hinges typically allow free rotation of connected parts, in reinforced concrete bridges typical implementation of a hinge involves thinning of the concrete structure while adding more reinforcement locally.