An international perspective: widening existing bridges with orthotropic steel deck panels: Fid-Bau Portal

An international perspective: widening existing bridges with orthotropic steel deck panels

Huang, Carl / Mangus, Alfred R.

Rehabilitation of existing bridges is an extremely complex and challenging aspect of bridge engineering. Widening of existing bridges without interruption of traffic is even more complex. The focus of this discussion is conceptual solutions, an overview of the fundamental issues or choices in practicable widenings. The USA Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) is promoting the term Accelerated Bridge Construction 'ABC' for economical efficient construction methods with more prefabrication and less site work. The technique of orthotropic steel deck panel replacement is the innovative ABC technique for widening existing bridges. The goal of any ABC method is to minimize the effects on other stakeholders and achieve the FHWA's desired 100-year service life for a new bridge. FHWA's goal is (a) to minimize traffic delays while erecting a bridge, (b) to minimize river commerce and harbor shipping delays while erecting a bridge over navigable bodies of water, and (c) to minimize environmental impacts while erecting a bridge. Some of the featured existing bridges were not physically widened, but their traffic flow was increased via renovation of the existing deck system with orthotropic steel deck panels. The FHWA is currently in the process of creating a new orthotropic bridge manual to replace the 1963 Orthotropic Bridge Manual. There is lack of enthusiasm in the USA for orthotropic bridges that existed in the 1960s among the US steel industry and affiliated trade associates. Another design challenge is the lack of orthotropic bridge design software. Featured widened bridges from around the world include the Cologne-Rodenkirchen Bridge of Germany (1994); Wakato Ohashi Suspension of Japan, (1999); Angus L. Macdonald Bridge (1999); Tamar Suspension Bridge, UK (2001)), and the Songsu Bridge, Korea (2002). A comprehensive reference list is provided to assist in obtaining more detailed design and fabrication information about renovated bridges with orthotropic steel decks. A comprehensive table of projects located around the world is also included.