No Star Trek: Next Generation Technical Manual, é mencionado que o módulo Bridge é substituível. Isso explica por que a ponte deveria estar onde está.
The concept of the replaceable bridge module originated during Star Trek V, when we were working with Herman Zimmerman on a new Enterprise bridge that was quite a bit different from the one seen in Star Trek IV. We rationalized that this was because the bridge, located at the top of the saucer, was a plug-in module designed for easy replacement. This would permit the ship's control systems to be upgraded, thereby extending the useful lifetime of a starship, and would make it easier to customize a particular ship for a specific type of mission. This concept also fits the fact that we've seen the main bridges of at least four different Miranda class starships, the Reliant (Star Trek II), the Saratoga (Star Trek IV), the Lantree (Unnatural Selection) and the Brattain (Night Terrors), each of which had a different bridge module.
Os problemas com essa colocação são claros, mas também vemos que as naves-naves não blindadas são extremamente vulneráveis. Se um inimigo quisesse destruir seu navio, eles seriam mais bem servidos se tivessem como alvo o reator. Se eles quisessem matar especificamente a tripulação da ponte, eles sempre poderiam levá-los para o espaço, não importando onde a ponte estivesse localizada.