Beam bridges are the most simple and most used. When we did our straw bridge activity, this is the design that you used.

Beam bridges are made up of horizontal beams and vertical piers or supports. The more piers, the greater the strength. However, one of the examples below is very long! But, in order to go that distance, it needed a lot of supports.

Best Use: To go across a smaller distance.

The Good: Easy to build and not as costly.

The Bad: Can't be too long, usually not high enough to let ships pass underneath, not very interesting to look at.