The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) and the American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC) partner to offer the Student Steel Bridge Competition. The competition will require extensive steel and structural knowledge to build a practical, hands-on steel-design project. The 2026 competition rules state that an additional pedestrian crossing over the Rio Grande is being considered to better connect communities bordering the river north of El Paso. The student steel bridge will be designed, fabricated, and constructed to a 1:10 scale. The bridge must span a total distance of 18 feet, crossing both the river and the navigation channel, and include a 5-foot cantilever on the eastern end. Furthermore, the regulations stipulate that no builders or materials may be positioned on the western end, requiring the entire structure to be constructed from a single side, unlike in previous years. The bridge will need to support a vertical load of 2500 pounds placed in two separate locations in addition to a 50-pound lateral load. There are 11 possible locations for the two vertical loads and lateral loads to be applied, which are specified in the rules. The team will work to determine the design, fabrication, and construction of TCNJ’s steel bridge to pass the loading tests and other competition judging categories, such as aesthetics, construction speed, lightness, and stiffness, in order to place in the regional competition held at The College of New Jersey (TCNJ), and hopefully make the national competition