Abstract:After years of development, through the independent research, the introduction, digestion, absorption and re-innovation, the high-speed railway technology has been developed rapidly in China. According to the Medium and Long-term Railway Network Planning reviewed by the State Council in 2016, many mountainous high-speed railways will be built in the vast areas of central and western China. For the passenger dedicated railways in mountainous area, when the line crosses the long valley sections, it is necessary to use many high piers to cross the valley. The multi-span simple-supported beam bridge or long-span continuous girder bridge is one of the bridge structure types able for selection. It is necessary to study the suitability of bridge structure under this terrain condition. In order to determine the economic and reasonable structure of the bridge, through the comparative analysis of the mechanical characteristics of the long-span continuous beam and the simple-supported structure, and combined with the design experience of the bridges for Guiyang-Guangzhou High-speed Railway and Chengdu-Guiyang High-speed Railway, the design principles and solutions of bridges under the different long-span conditions are put forward, which can provide reference for the design and construction of high-speed railway bridges in mountainous areas.