Components of Bridge

‡ Substructure ‡ Superstructure
„ Foundation (Pile/ Spread Footing) „ Any structures above bearing
Bridge Design „ Pier (Column) which support the roadway
„ Abutment „ Wearing Surface

II. Bridge Types

deck bearings

pier

abutment

foundation

Components of Bridge Components of Bridge

Superstructure Roadway Deck

Substructure
Abutment Abutment

Superstructure
Roadway Deck

Substructure Pier
Abutment
Bearing
Components of Bridge Components of Bridge

Pin Joint

Bearing

Cap Beam

Bearing

Components of Bridge Components of Bridge

Superstructure
Superstructure

Bearing Cap Beam

Cap Beam

Pier
Piers
Span Length
span length

single span
Types of Bridge
span
Types by Kinds of Traffic
multi span
Types by Traffic Position
Types by Material and Fabrication
Types by Structural System

‡ Span > 6 m Æ Bridge ‡ Short span: 6-30 m

‡ Span < 6 m Æ Culvert ‡ Medium span: 30-100 m
‡ Long span: > 100 m

Types of Bridge by Traffic Types: Highway Bridge

‡ Highway bridge (trucks, cars)
‡ Pedestrian bridge (pedestrians, bicycles)
‡ Railway bridge (trains)
‡ Transit guideway (city trains, monorail) Golden Gate Bridge
California, USA
‡ Other types (pipelines, utilities, industrial, aqueduct, airport
structure)

Avon Mouth Bridge

Bristol, UK
Types: Pedestrian Bridge Types: Railway Bridge

El Alamillo Bridge
Seville, Spain
200m span

Mountain Creek Bridge (1880)

Canada

Japan Bridge (1994) Stoney Creek Bridge (1894)

Paris, France Canada
100m span 325ft span

Types: Transit Guideway Types: Others

Roman Aqueduct
Spain

BTS System
Bangkok, Thailand Pont du Gard (Roman Aqueduct) (circa 19 BC)
Nimes, France
Types: Others Types: Others

Navigational Canal
Netherlands
Runway at the Los Angeles International Airport (LAX)
Los Angeles, USA

Types of Bridge by Traffic Position Types: Deck Type

‡ Deck type
„ Structural components under the deck
„ Preferred by drivers (can clearly see the view)
„ Requires space under the bridge
‡ Through type
„ Structural components above the deck
„ Obstructed view (not a problem for railway bridges) Rhone Bridge
France
„ No structure under the bridge
‡ Half-through type Henry Hudson Bridge (1936)
Types: Through Type Types: Through Type
Firth of Forth Bridge (1890)
Scotland
521m span

Tonegawa River Bridge (1972)

Japan

Types: Deck + Through Type Types: Half-Through

Types by Material & Fabrications Types by Material & Fabrications
‡ Materials ‡ Fabrications
„ Masonry (brick, rock) „ Precast (RC/PC)
„ Timber „ Cast-in-place (RC/PC)
„ Reinforced Concrete (RC) „ Pretensioned (PC)
„ Prestressed Concrete (PC) „ Posttensioned (PC)
„ Iron „ Prefabricated (steel)
„ Steel „ Rivet (steel)
„ Aluminum „ Bolted (steel/ timber)
„ Composites „ Welded (steel)
„ Plastics „ Etc…
„ Etc…

Timber Bridge
probably built in place?

Types by Material & Fabrications Types by Material & Fabrications

Steel
Leonardo Da Vinci Bridge (2001) Prefabricated
Norway (probably with precast slab)
40 m Span
Glue-laminated Timber Bridge
Types by Material & Fabrications Types by Material & Fabrications
Prestressed Segmental Bridge
Prestressed & Precast & Pretensioned Precast & Post-Tensioned
(with perhaps precast slab)

Types of Bridge by Structure Types: Arch Bridge

‡ Arch
‡ Beam
‡ Cantilever
‡ Cable-Stayed
‡ Suspension
‡ Others
Types: Arch Bridge Types: Arch Bridge
‡ Semi-circle (has vertical reaction Hinge changes the degree of
force only) hingless indeterminatcy in the structure
‡ Flat arch (has vertical and
horizontal forces at the support)
‡ Tied arch (tie resists tension
force)
2 hinged

3 hinged

keystone tie

voussoir

Types: Arch Bridge Types: Arch Bridge

Ponte dei Salti Bridge

(circa 1st century AD)
Switzerland
Masonry Arch

‡ The arch construction was ‡ Materials

invented during the Roman „ Masonry
empire „ Timber
Hinge Detail at the top of an arch bridge
„ Concrete (Reinforced/ Prestressed)
„ Steel
Types: Masonry Arch Bridge Types: Concrete Arch Bridge

Bixby Bridge (1932)

California, USA
97.5 m span
Concrete arch

Types: Concrete Arch Bridge Types: Prestressed Concrete Arch

Enz Bridge (1961)

Mülacker, Germany
46 m span
Concrete arch Natchez Trace Parkway Bridge (1994)
Tennessee, USA
502 m span
Types: Steel Arch Bridge Types: Steel Arch Bridge

Construction of Sydney Harbor Bridge

Sydney Harbor Bridge (1938)

Sydney, Australia
parabolic arch
503 m span

Types: Beam/Girder Bridges Types: Beam/Girder Bridges

Common Materials
‡ The most basic type of „ Timber Truss
bridge „ RC Beam
‡ Consists of a beam „ Steel Plate Girder/ Box Girder
simply supported on „ Steel Truss Girder
each side by a pier and
„ Prestressed Concrete Precast Girder
can be made continuous
‡ I-Beam, U-Beam, T-Beam
later
‡ Segmentally Prestressed Box Beam
‡ Typically inexpensive to
build
Types: Beam/Girder Bridges Types: Beam/Girder Bridges

simple

cantilever

continuous

Mountain Creek Bridge (1880)

Canada
‡ Currently, most of the beam bridges are precast (in case of RC and PC) Timber
or prefabricated
‡ Most are simply-supported
‡ Some are made continuous on site

Types: Beam/Girder Bridges Types: Beam/Girder Bridges

Steel Box
Girder
Bridge

hot-rolled box plate girder

sections

‡ Steel sections may be hot-rolled shapes (for short-span bridge), Box

section (medium span), or Plate Girder (medium span)
Types: Beam/Girder Bridges Types: Beam/Girder Bridges

Upper: Steel Plate Girder Bridge

Lower: Prestressed Concrete I-Girder Bridge Steel Plate Girder

Types: Beam/Girder Bridges Types: Beam/Girder Bridges

6'9" ‡ Prestressed Concrete
Precast (and
Pretensioned) sections
8" are usually of I-shape

54"
28 o 0.5" strands

6@2" =12"

13@2" =26"
Typical Cross-Section of
Steel Plate Girder
Pretensioned AASHTO
(Continuous)
Type IV girder
AASHTO Type IV Girder.
Types: Beam/Girder Bridges Types: Beam/Girder Bridges
Precast Pretensioned Prestressed Concrete Bridge ‡ Post-Tensioned Prestressed Concrete are often found in the form of
Simply-Supported Beam segmentally precast members

Types: Beam/Girder Bridges Types: Beam/Girder Bridges

‡ Segmental construction may be
constructed in 2 ways
„ Cantilever Construction –
construct from the pier equally
on both sides
„ Span-by-Span Construction –
finish one span at a time

Span-by-Span

Cantilever
Types: Beam/Girder Bridges Types: Beam/Girder Bridges

‡ Some types of truss bridges can also be considered as a “beam bridge”

when looked globally

Types: Beam/Girder Bridges Types: Beam/Girder Bridges

Steel Truss can be of beam type, arch type, or cantilever type

depending on the primary mechanisms
Components of Truss
Types: Cantilever Bridges Types: Cantilever Bridges
‡ Bridge roadway is constructed out from the pier in two direction at the
same time so that the weight on both side counterbalance each other

Types: Cantilever Bridges Types: Steel Truss Cantilever Bridge

‡ Steel Truss Cantilever
350'
‡ Prestressed Concrete Segmental Cantilever Beam
150'

1700' Firth of Forth Bridge (1890)

Scotland
521m span
Types: Steel Truss Cantilever Bridge Types: Steel Truss Cantilever Bridge

Firth of Forth Bridge (1890)

Scotland
521m span

Types: Cantilever Bridges Types: Cable-Stayed Bridge

TOWER/ PYLON TOWER/ PYLON
‡ Prestressed Concrete Segmental Cantilever Beam

Columbia River Bridge Vertical Loads from Traffic

USA
1950 ft span ROADWAY DECK

PIER PIER

Reaction Force Reaction Force

Types: Cable-Stayed Bridge Types: Cable-Stayed Bridge
‡ All the forces are transferred to the pylon

‡ Roadway Materials
„ (Prestressed) Concrete Box Roadway
„ Steel Box Roadway
Steel Truss Roadway Precast
„ Steel Box I-Shaped
Concrete Panel
Beam Cross Beam
Deck

Types: Cable-Stayed Bridge Types: Cable-Stayed Bridge

‡ Harp Type ‡ Cable-Stayed Bridge

Rama IX Bridge
Bangkok
450m span

‡ Fan Type

Tatara Bridge
Japan
890m span
Types: Cable-Stayed Bridge Types: Cable-Stayed Bridge

Types: Suspension Bridge Types: Suspension Bridge

‡ Suspension bridge needs to have very strong main cable
‡ Cables are anchored at the abutment Æ abutment has to be massive

TOWER/ PYLON TOWER/ PYLON

Vertical Loads from Traffic

ROADWAY DECK

ABUTMENT ABUTMENT

PIER PIER
Types: Suspension Bridge Types: Suspension Bridge
‡ 3 Hinges Suspension Bridge
‡ Tension member is a truss

London Tower Bridge (1894)

London, UK

Types: Suspension Bridge Types: Suspension Bridge

Mackinac Bridge
(1957)
Michigan, USA
1158 m span

Tacoma Narrows Bridge (1940)

Washington, USA
2800 ft span
Types: Others Types: Others

The bridge can

rotate to allow ships
to go under

Gateshead Millennium Bridge (2000)

Gateshead, UK
Pontoon (Floating) Bridge 126m span

Types: Others Which type should I use?

Consider the followings:
‡ Span length
‡ Bridge length
‡ Beam spacing
‡ Material available
‡ Site conditions (foundations, height, space constraints)
‡ Speed of construction
‡ Constructability
‡ Technology/ Equipment available
‡ Aesthetics
‡ Cost
‡ Access for maintenance

Charing Cross Bridge (middle - truss) and Golden Jubilee

Bridges (outer – cable-stayed).
 Span Length Span Length
steel suspension

steel rib arch

steel truss arch

concrete arch
Types

steel truss Types min max

slab 0 12
cable-stayed steel concrete girder 10 220
steel girder 10 270
cable-stayed concrete cable-stayed concrete 90 250
cable-stayed steel 90 350
steel truss 90 550
steel girder
concrete arch 90 300
steel truss arch 250 500
concrete girder steel rib arch 120 370
steel suspension 300 2000
slab

0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400 1600 1800 2000
Span Length (m)

Cost vs. Span Length Cost vs. Span Length

‡ The span length may be influenced by the cost of
superstructure (cost/meter) and substructure (cost/pier)
‡ If the substructure cost is about 25% of total cost Æ shorter
span is more cost-effective
‡ If the substructure cost is about 50% of total cost Æ longer
spans are more economical

Substructure here is expensive compared with superstructure

Cost vs. Span Length
If the water is shallow,
substructure is inexpensive
compared with
superstructure
Access for Maintainence
‡ Total Cost = Initial Cost + Maintenance Cost
‡ Bridge should be made easy to inspect and maintain
‡ Maintenance cost may govern the selection of bridge
„ Steel bridge needs a lot of maintenance in coastal regions
„ Concrete bridge usually require the least maintenance

Beam Spacing Materials

‡ Beam spacing determine the ‡ Steel
number of girders
‡ Large Spacing ‡ Concrete
„ Fewer girder (faster to erect) „ Cast-in-place
„ Deeper and heavier girder (can it „ Precast
be transported?)
„ Reduced redundancy ‡ Material choice depends on the cost of material at the bridge
„ Thicker slab site
‡ Smaller Spacing ‡ Shipping cost from fabricators
„ More girder
„ Smaller girder
„ More redundancy (but more
beams to inspect)
„ Thinner slab
Speed of construction
‡ In urban areas, the construction of bridge may disrupt traffic
„ Prefabricated/ Precast member are the only choice
„ Substructure construction may disrupt traffic more than the
superstructure erection Æ may consider longer spans
Site Requirement
Requirement for shipping channel leads to long span bridge
Site Requirement
‡ Is the bridge straight or curved
„ Precast I-Girder cannot be curved
„ Segmental prestressed can have slight curve
„ Cast-in-place
‡ Is shipping channel required?
‡ Shipping of prefabricated pieces to site
‡ Is the temporary falsework required? Can it be done with the
site conditions?
Site Requirement
Segmental pieces may be easier to ship in narrow urban streets
Site Requirement Site Requirement

In the Millau Aqueduct, the superstructure was completed inland and pushed into the span

Aesthetics Aesthetics
‡ An ugly bridge, however safe, serviceable, and inexpensive, is ‡ Determinant of bridge’s appearance (in order of importance)
not a good bridge „ Vertical and Horizontal geometry relative to surrounding topography
‡ Long span bridge over a river can be a landmark; thus, and other structures
aesthetics should be an important factor „ Superstructure type: arch, girder, etc…
„ Pier placement
‡ Bridge should blend with the environment
„ Abutment placement
‡ Smooth transition between members „ Superstructure shape, parapet and railing
‡ Avoid unnecessary decorations „ Pier shape
‡ Bridge should have an appearance of adequate strength „ Abutment shape
„ Color, surface texture, ornamentations
„ Signing, Lighting, Lanscaping
Aesthetics Aesthetics

Aesthetics Aesthetics