Abstract The Lupu Bridge is a steel box tied arch bridge with a main span of 550 m, which held the world record of the longest arch span on its completion in 2003. This bridge has been the subject of controversy since its conceptual design; however, almost a decade has passed, and this bridge has become a landmark of Shanghai city while serving as the main traffic corridor connecting the two districts on the north and south river banks, especially during the 2010 world expo. This paper presents the background of the comparison and selection of the original bridge type, further structural optimization of the arch bridge conceptual design and the challenges that came up during the design and construction, along with their corresponding solutions. The successful design and construction of this bridge provides some valuable information, and moreover, a very useful engineering practice for long span arch bridges constructed on soft soil foundations.