Villeneuve-Vallée du Lot Tourist Office

Villeneuve-sur-Lot, located in the Lot-et-Garonne department, is a town that stands out for its historic and contemporary bridges, which bear witness to its development and architectural heritage. These majestic structures span the Lot, a river that has shaped the town’s history and urban development.

The bridges of Villeneuve-sur-Lot are part of a harmonious continuity between tradition and innovation. They link the ages while uniting the two banks of the town. Each bridge, whether medieval, modern or contemporary, tells part of the story of Villeneuve-sur-Lot and reflects the technical and aesthetic evolution of bridge architecture.

Today, these bridges are places of passage, but also ideal vantage points from which to admire the river landscapes of the Lot. They are a perfect illustration of the dialogue between heritage and modernity that is so dear to this town in Lot-et-Garonne.

Visit Villeneuve-sur-Lot on your own

Bridges not only link shores, they also bring hearts and cultures together.

our bridges exceptional

©Villeneuve Sur Lot Marion Carcel 7 Min|Foehn Photographie

cieutat bridge VILLENEUVE-SUR-LOT

Construction of the Cieutat bridge, also known as the “Pont-Vieux“, began in 1282 under English rule to replace the wooden bridge.

The bridge originally had 5 arches and was topped by 3 fortified square brick towers fitted with portcullises, gates and machicolations. They were intended to complete the town’s defensive system. The architecture of the Pont-Vieux inspired the Valentré bridge in Cahors, built a few years later.

Successive floods in the early 17th century swept away two arches on the right bank and the central tower. It was only in 1643, on the orders of Richelieu, that a single arch measuring 35 m in diameter was erected.

The bridge is named after the mayor, Nicolas de Cieutat, baron of Pujols and Tombebouc, who defended Villeneuve-sur-Lot in 1585 against Queen Margot, who had come to conquer the town.

liberation bridge VILLENEUVE-SUR-LOT

The construction of the Pont de la Libération, also known as the Pont-Neuf, was decided in 1894, but it wasn’t until 1912 that engineer Eugène Freyssinet’s project was chosen: to build a bridge consisting of a single arch spanning around 100 metres. This was a world record for the time!

To achieve this, Freyssinet used prestressed concrete, a material he patented in 1928. This material is structured by tensioned steel wires onto which the concrete is poured. After drying, the steel wires transfer their tension to the concrete by adhesion.

Construction of the Pont-Neuf did not begin until 1914, and was interrupted several times during the First World War. From 1923 to 1935, one of the tracks was used by the tramway. Like Sainte-Catherine church, the brickwork and mitre arches of the facade are a reference to the medieval foundation of the town.