2.

Preliminary Design

2.2

All Existing U.S. Bridges 2003 NBI Data

60.0%

Definition

Design Considerations
Safety
Economy
Durability
Aesthetics

58.0%

50.0%
40 0%
40.0%
31.2%

30.0%
20.0%
8.4%

10.0%

1.5%

0.5%

150-199

200-249

0.4%

0.0%
0
0%
<50

50-99

100-149

>=250

Maximum Span (ft)

Total Built = 475,000 Bridges

2.3

Bridges Built, 2003 NBI Data

Bridge Selection Guide

2.4

WSDOT
Span Range (ft)

60%

P/S

50%

90

180

270

360

450

540

630

Pipe
Concrete Culvert

Percent Built

Plate Arch
RC Slab

40%

RC Tee Beam
RC Box Girder
PT Conc Box Girder

30%

Steel

Segmental PT Box Girder

PS Conc Slab
PS Conc Deck Bulb Tee

20%

PS Conc Girder

RC

Steel Rolled Girder

Steel Plate Girder

10%

Steel Box Girder

0%

Glulam Timber

Steel Truss
Timber

1950

1955

1960

1965

1970

1975

1980

Year Built

1985

1990

1995

2000

Cable Stay Bridge

Suspension Bridge
Floating Bridge
Arch Bridge
Moveable Span Bridge
Tunnel

Bridge Type Selection Criteria

z

z
z

2.5

Concrete Bridge Types

Site
Type of Crossing Highway / Waterway
Location Urban / Rural
Site access / Staging area
Schedule speed of construction, availability of materials
Service Life and Life Cycle Cost
PCA Publication, SR342, "Material Usage and Condition
of Existing Bridges in the U.S.",
http://www.cement.org/bookstore/ search for SR342
Life 365 (SFA, Grace, Master Builders)
http://www silicafume org/specifiers lifecycle html
http://www.silicafume.org/specifiers-lifecycle.html
NIST BridgeLCC
http://www.bfrl.nist.gov/bridgelcc/welcome.html
NCHRP Report 483 - "Bridge Life-Cycle Cost Analysis",
http://gulliver.trb.org/publications/nchrp/nchrp_rpt_483a.
pdf

Slab Bridges

z
z
z
z
z
z
z

Slab Bridges
II-Girder
Girder Bridges
Box-Girder Bridges
Segmental Bridges
Spliced-Girder Bridges
Arch Bridges
Cable-Stayed Bridges

I-Girder Bridges

2.7

2.6

2.8

Walnut Lane Bridge, Philadelphia, PA

z
z
z
z

Simple, easy to construct

Well-suited for spans up to about 50 ft
Cast-in-place or precast. Reinforced or prestressed
Can be made continuous with abutments and piers to
mobilize the frame action

z
z
z

Most popular bridge type

For spans up to about 160 ft.
Common sizes: AASHTO/PCI Type I-VI (28 to 72)
and Bulb-Ts (54, 63, and 72)

Box Girder Bridges

Segmental Bridges

2.9

2.10

Sagadahoc Bridge, Bath-Woolwich, ME, Span 420

FHWA Showcase Bridge, Cambridge, OH 115-6 Span
z
z
z
z

Second-most popular after the I-girder bridges

Common sizes: AASHTO/PCI Type BI-BIV (27 to 42)
Span Range: 60 ft 105 ft.
Use of side-by-side boxes without a wearing course
offers speedy construction

Spliced Girder Bridges

2.11

z
z
z
z
z

Economical, durable
Economical
durable, aesthetically pleasing
Span-by-span or balanced cantilever construction
Post-tensioned or/and Cable-stayed
Typical segment type: Concrete box
Cast-in-place or precast
Perfectly suited for gradual and sharply curved alignments

Arch Bridges
z

z
z

Shelby Creek Bridge, KY, Span 250 ft.

z
z
z

2.12

Most efficient shape for

supporting gravity loading
Cast-in-place or precast
The longest existing
concrete
t arch
h bridge:
b id
Wanxian Bridge, China.
Span = 1378 ft.
The first segmental precast
concrete arch bridge in the
U.S.: The Natchez Trace
P k
Parkway,
F
Franklin,
kli
Tennessee. Dual Spans of
582 ft. and 462 ft

Innovative technique for very long spans

Long-segment precast prestressed girders spliced
Spans of more than 300 ft have been achieved

Cable-Stayed Bridges

z
z
z
z
z

2.13

2.14

Structurally
y efficient use of materials.
Concrete in compression and steel stays in tension.
Economical and aesthetically pleasing.
Most popular type for signature bridges.
The longest concrete cable-stayed bridge in the U.S.:
Dames Point, Jacksonville, Fl. Main Span = 1300 ft

AASHTO Bridge Design

Specifications
z
z
z

Standard Specifications
LRFD S
Specifications
ifi ti
State Practices

2.15

2.16

Preliminary Design
z

CIP Short Span Bridges

Slab Bridges
T-Beam Bridges
Precast, Prestressed
Standard AASHTO/PCI Girders
I-Girders
I Girders
Box Girders

Properties, Dimensions and Maximum Spans

for AASHTO-PCI I-Girders

2.17

2.19

Properties, Dimensions and Maximum Spans for

PCI Bulb Tee Girders

Properties, Dimensions and Maximum Spans

for AASHTO-PCI I-Girders

2.18

2.20

Properties, Dimensions and Maximum Spans for

PCI Bulb Tee Girders

2.21

Properties, Dimensions and Maximum Spans for

New England Bulb Tee Girders

Properties, Dimensions and Maximum Spans for

AASHTO-PCI Box Girders

2.23

2.22

Properties, Dimensions and Maximum Spans for

New England Bulb Tee Girders

Properties, Dimensions and Maximum Spans for

AASHTO-PCI Box Girders

2.24

2.25

Design Charts
for
I-Girders
Simple Spans

2.26

Design Charts
for
I-Girders
Continuous Spans

Illinois DOT

Illinois DOT

2.27

2.28

Design Charts for I-Girders

Illinois DOT
5-6
o.c.
Cont

5-6
o.c.
S/S
Cont
9-0
o.c.
S/S

2.29

Design Examples developed by FHWA-AASHTO

based on LRFD Specs, Second Edition, 1998 and
Interims through 2002:
http://lrfd.aashtoware.org/?siteid=34&pageid=339