Fundamentals of Bridge Design

Lecture II

Types of Bridges

31 October 2019
 Types of Bridge
Types by Kinds of Traffic
Types by Traffic Position
Types by Material and Fabrication
Types by Structural System
Types of Bridge by Traffic
o Highway bridge (trucks, cars)
o Pedestrian bridge (pedestrians, bicycles)
o Railway bridge (trains)
o Transit guideway (city trains, monorail)
o Other types (pipelines, utilities, industrial, aqueduct, airport
structure)
Types: Highway Bridge

Golden Gate Bridge

California, USA

Avon Mouth Bridge

Bristol, UK
Types: Pedestrian Bridge

El Alamillo Bridge
Seville, Spain
200m span

Japan Bridge (1994)

Paris, France
100m span
Types: Railway Bridge

Mountain Creek Bridge (1880)

Canada

Stoney Creek Bridge (1894)

Canada
325ft span
Types: Transit Guideway

BTS System
Bangkok, Thailand
Types: Others

Runway at the Los Angeles International Airport (LAX)

Los Angeles, USA
Types: Others

Navigational Canal
Netherlands
Types of Bridge by Traffic Position
o Deck type
Structuralcomponents under the deck
Preferred by drivers (can clearly see the view)
Requires space under the bridge

o Through type
Structuralcomponents above the deck
Obstructed view (not a problem for railway bridges)
No structure under the bridge

o Half-through type
Types: Deck Type

Rhone Bridge
France

Henry Hudson Bridge (1936)

Types: Through Type
Firth of Forth Bridge (1890)
Scotland
521m span
Types: Through Type

Tonegawa River Bridge (1972)

Japan
Types: Deck + Through Type
Types: Half-Through
Types by Material & Fabrications
o Materials o 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…
Types by Material & Fabrications

Leonardo Da Vinci Bridge (2001)

Norway
40 m Span
Glue-laminated Timber Bridge
Types by Material & Fabrications
Steel
Prefabricated
(probably with precast slab)
Types by Material & Fabrications

Prestressed & Precast & Pretensioned

(with perhaps precast slab)
Types by Material & Fabrications
Prestressed Segmental Bridge
Precast & Post-Tensioned
Types of Bridge by Structure
 Slab
 Girder
 T-Girder
 Box-Girder
 Truss
 Cable-Stayed
 Suspension
 Others
Types: Slab Bridge
 The simplest type of bridge to construct and design
 Requires less labor and form work and economical for length up
to 12m
 Carry loads primarily in shear and flexural bending
Types: Girder Bridges
 The most basic type of bridge
 They consist of a floor slab,
girders and bearings, which
support and transmit gravity loads
to the substructure
 Girders resist bending moments
and shear forces are used for
spans 12m to 90m
 Girders are classified into
T-Girder (cast-insitu), concrete
Box-Girder (RC or Prestressed),
and steel plate Girder.
Girder Bridges

simple

cantilever

continuous

o Currently, most of the beam bridges are precast (in case of RC and PC)
or prefabricated
o Most are simply-supported
o Some are made continuous on site
T-Girder Bridges
 Usually used for a single span bridge spanning between 12-20m
 The design depth of a normal girder bridge may vary between 7-
10% of the span length
T-Girder Bridges
Box-Girder Bridges
 Are used if a slender structure is desired or for curved bridges
with small horizontal curves where a great resistance to torsion
is required with no loss of strength is bending and shear.
 Are recommended to used for span length of between 30-90m
Steel Girder Bridges

hot-rolled box plate girder

sections

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

section (medium span), or Plate Girder (medium span)
Steel Girder Bridges
Steel Box
Girder
Bridge
Steel Girder Bridges

Steel Plate Girder

(Continuous)
Pretensioned Prestressed Girder Bridges
6'9" o 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
Pretensioned AASHTO
Type IV girder
AASHTO Type IV Girder.
Post-Tensioned Prestressed Girder Bridges
o Post-Tensioned Prestressed Concrete are often found in the form of
segmentally precast members
Truss Bridges
 Comparatively easier to erect on site and are often the choice for
long bridges
 Some types of truss bridges can also be considered as a “beam
bridge” when looked globally
Truss Bridges

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

depending on the primary mechanisms
Truss Bridges

Components of Truss
Frame Bridges
 A rigid frame bridge is one in which the piers and the girder are
one solid structure
 Members in rigid frame bridges are much larger than these in a
typical building
 The supports of frame bridges are either hinged or fixed
 Since it is externally indeterminate structure not suitable when
the foundation is likely to sink
Types of frame bridges
 A portal frame is the simplest
design and is widely used for the
piers of elevated highway
bridges because the space
underneath can be effectively
used for other roads of parking
lets

 - rahmen: usually used for

bridges in mountainous regions
where the foundation is firm,
passing over deep valleys with a
relatively long span or for
bridges crossing over
expressways.
Types of frame bridges
 V- leg Rahmen is similar to a – Rahmen bridge but can
span longer distances with no axial force in the center span
of the girder.
Arch Bridges
 The arch could be
• Semi-circle (has vertical
reaction force only)
• Flat arch (has vertical and
horizontal forces at the support)
• Tied arch (tie resists tension force)
 Bending moments caused by the
horizontal forces balances those
due to gravity loads.
 Economical in material compared
with an equivalent straight, simply
supported girder or truss but may
have high fabrication and erection
cost.
Types: Arch Bridge  Two-hinge arch
• One degree of indeterminacy
externally
• Not affected due to rotation of the
abutments
 Three-hinge arch
• Rotation, small displacement of
the foundation or unequal
settlement of the foundation,
doesn’t significantly affected the
thrust and moments
Arch Bridge
Arch Bridge
Types: Arch Bridge

Ponte dei Salti Bridge

(circa 1st century AD)
Switzerland
Masonry Arch

o Thearch construction was o Materials

invented during the Roman  Masonry
empire  Timber
 Concrete (Reinforced/ Prestressed)
 Steel
Types: Concrete Arch Bridge

Bixby Bridge (1932)

California, USA
97.5 m span
Concrete arch
Types: Concrete Arch Bridge

Enz Bridge (1961)

Mülacker, Germany
46 m span
Concrete arch
Types: Prestressed Concrete Arch

Natchez Trace Parkway Bridge (1994)

Tennessee, USA
502 m span
Types: Steel Arch Bridge

Sydney Harbor Bridge (1938)

Sydney, Australia
parabolic arch
503 m span
Types: Steel Arch Bridge

Construction of Sydney Harbor Bridge

Cantilever Bridges
Cantilever Bridges
o 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: Steel Truss Cantilever Bridge

350'

150'

1700' Firth of Forth Bridge (1890)

Scotland
521m span
Types: Cantilever Bridges
o Prestressed Concrete Segmental Cantilever Beam

Columbia River Bridge

USA
1950 ft span
Cable-Stayed Bridge
TOWER/ PYLON TOWER/ PYLON

Vertical Loads from Traffic

ROADWAY DECK

PIER PIER

Reaction Force Reaction Force

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

o Roadway Materials
(Prestressed) Concrete Box Roadway
Steel Box Roadway
Steel Truss Roadway
Types: Cable-Stayed Bridge

Precast
Steel Box I-Shaped
Concrete Panel
Beam Cross Beam
Deck
Types: Cable-Stayed Bridge
o Harp Type

o Fan Type
Types: Cable-Stayed Bridge
o Cable-Stayed Bridge

Rama IX Bridge
Bangkok
450m span

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

Abay Bridge Ethiopia 303m

Types: Suspension Bridge
o Suspension bridge needs to have very strong main cable
o Cables are anchored at the abutment  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

London Tower Bridge (1894)

London, UK
Types: Suspension Bridge

Tacoma Narrows Bridge (1940)

Washington, USA
2800 ft span
Types: Suspension Bridge
Mackinac Bridge
(1957)
Michigan, USA
1158 m span
Types: Others

Pontoon (Floating) Bridge

Types: Others

The bridge can

rotate to allow ships
to go under

Gateshead Millennium Bridge (2000)

Gateshead, UK
126m span
Which type should I use?
Consider the followings:
o Span length
o Bridge length
o Beam spacing
o Material available
o Site conditions (foundations, height, space constraints)
o Speed of construction
o Constructability
o Technology/ Equipment available
o Aesthetics
o Cost
o Access for maintenance
Span Length
steel suspension

steel rib arch

steel truss arch

concrete arch

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 girder steel truss 90 550
concrete arch 90 300
concrete girder steel truss arch 250 500
steel rib arch 120 370
steel suspension 300 2000
slab

0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400 1600 1800 2000
Span Length (m)
Span Length
Cost vs. Span Length
o The span length may be influenced by the cost of
superstructure (cost/meter) and substructure (cost/pier)
o If the substructure cost is about 25% of total cost  shorter
span is more cost-effective
o If the substructure cost is about 50% of total cost  longer
spans are more economical
Cost vs. Span Length

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
o Total Cost = Initial Cost + Maintenance Cost
o Bridge should be made easy to inspect and maintain
o 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
o Beam spacing determine the
number of girders
o Large Spacing
 Fewer girder (faster to erect)
 Deeper and heavier girder (can it
be transported?)
 Reduced redundancy
 Thicker slab
o Smaller Spacing
 More girder
 Smaller girder
 More redundancy (but more
beams to inspect)
 Thinner slab
Materials
o Steel
o Concrete
Cast-in-place
Precast

o Material choice depends on the cost of material at the bridge

site
o Shipping cost from fabricators
Speed of construction
o 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  may consider longer spans
Site Requirement
o Is the bridge straight or curved
Precast I-Girder cannot be curved
Segmental prestressed can have slight curve
Cast-in-place

o Is shipping channel required?

o Shipping of prefabricated pieces to site
o Is the temporary falsework required? Can it be done with the
site conditions?
Site Requirement

Requirement for shipping channel leads to long span bridge

Site Requirement

Segmental pieces may be easier to ship in narrow urban streets

Site Requirement

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