The present paper investigates the effect of limit state selection ~strength versus serviceability! on bridge deck life-cycle costs and thus on optimal repair strategies. Such a comparison may then help determine whether safety or functionality ~or both! are important criteria when optimizing bridge life-cycle performance and costs. The structural element under consideration is a reinforced con...

The Millennium Footbridge was opened to the public on June 10, 2000 – the first new bridge across the River Thames in historic London in more than a century. Nearly 100,000 people used the new bridge in its first day of operation. On June 12, 2000, the Millennium Bridge was ordered closed, due to hazardous deck motions. Seemingly random pedestrian footfalls were causing resonance of the bridge ...

This paper introduces recent experience of Ramboll Finland bridge inspectors and NDTexperts in condition evaluation of road bridges deck surface structure by using state of the art NDTtechniques.This paper focuses on possible benefits of applying NDTtechniques in condition evaluation of road bridge deck surface structures. In addition, examples from several actual test cases are reviewed. Only ...

Introduction Cable stayed bridges are a feasible choice for middle length spans and can be also an alternative to suspension bridges in the range of 1000 m spans. In the last three years, cable stayed bridges having more than 1 km span have been built in China (Sutong Bridge, 1088 m and Stonecutters Bridge, 1018 km). The increasing in length implies higher aeroelastic interaction with wind acti...

The design of heated bridge deck anti-icing systems requires assessment of long-term performance under expected future weather conditions. A method of simulating the performance of such a system has been developed. The system studied in this work uses a bridge deck with embedded hydronic tubing and a ground-coupled heat pump system with vertical borehole heat exchangers as a heat source. The mo...

Reliable and durable asphalt surfacing systems still remain to be desired for the long-spanned orthotropic steel bridges as the nationally and internationally reports on distresses in deck pavement. Based on ten-year research works, this paper has presented a brief review and discussion of the Chinese practices and experiences of deck pavement on long-spanned steel bridges, including issues of ...

As Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) is increasingly employed for assessing the condition of bridge decks, quantifying and controlling the quality of GPR data becomes an important challenge. This paper uses a methodology to assess the accuracy of deck condition measures, and demonstrates the methodology in a case study involving real data. The latter are generated during GPR applications on a larg...

This presentation describes the concepts involved in design and construction of a reinforcement-free bridge deck intended to provide cost effective, durable and more rapid construction for highway bridges. The new wide flanged or bulb tee precast prestressed concrete girder sections currently used in bridges allow for a shorter effective span for the bridge deck because of the wide girder flang...

The results of an experimental investigation of kerbside bridge deck drainage units are presented. The conveyance capacity, resistance coefficients and sediment transporting efficiencies of different types of drainage unit used in shallow bridge drainage decks are examined over a range of bed gradients likely to be encountered in practice. The use of a V-shaped cross section is shown to be part...

In this work the aeroelastic stability of long-span bridge decks is numerically investigated. A simulation model is presented by which the aerodynamic fields and the structural motion are simultaneously and jointly simulated. The bridge deck is schematised as a bidimensional rigid body subject to elastic restraints corresponding to the torsional and the vertical degree of freedom, and the ALE f...