Bridges: Past, Present, and

Future
Dr. Lisa Spainhour
Dept. of Civil and Environmental Eng.
FAMU-FSU College of Engineering

What Defines a Bridge?

Four main factors define a bridge

Span (simple, continuous, cantilever)

Travel surface (deck, pony, through)
Form (beam, arch, truss, etc.)
Material (timber, concrete, steel)

Bridge BasicsSpan Types

Bridge BasicsTravel Surface

Bridge BasicsTypes
Five main types of bridges

Beam bridge
Truss bridge
Arch bridge
Cable-stayed bridge
Suspension bridge
Bridges may combine different types

Beam Bridges

Simple

span: top surface in compression, bottom in

tension
Cantilever span: top in tension, bottom in compression
Best for spans < 1000, requires many supports to
cross a long distance

Beam BridgesTypes

Beam BridgesExamples

Pony plate girder bridge

Stone footbridges

Beam BridgesExamples

I-540/I-70 Interchange, NC

Lincove Viaduct, NC
I-44, 16th St. Overpass, OK

Truss Bridges

Simple truss
Overall

Cantilever truss

behavior like a beam with less material in the middle

Each member either in tension (e.g. bottom chord) or
compression (e.g. top chord)
Rigid because bar ends pinned into triangles
Best for spans < 2000.

Truss BridgesTypes

Truss BridgesExamples

Stillwater Bridge, MN

Bridge No. 1482, MN

Baihe Bridge, China

Smithfield Street Bridge, PA

Covered Truss Bridges

Stone Mt. Covered Bridge, GA

Germantown Covered Bridge, OH

Inverted bowstring truss (1870s)
Town lattice truss (1830s)

Cantilever Truss Bridges

Kingston-Rhinecliff Bridge, NY

Firth of Forth, Scotland

(1890)

Arch Bridges

Under

load, ends try to move outward, require

strong abutments or ties to resist spreading
When supported at ends, arch is in
compression
Best for spans of 1000 to 2000.

Arch BridgesTypes

Arch BridgesExamples

The Pont du Gard

Aqueduct,
France
(Ca. 100 AD)

Thomas Aqueduct,
MD (1835)

Rio Cobre Bridge,

Jamaica (1800)
Wrought-Iron Ties,
Cast-Iron Deck

Arch BridgesConstruction

New River Bridge, WV

Natchez Trace Arch, TN

Tied Arch BridgesExamples

Bayonne Bridge, NJ
Willamette River Bridge, OR

I-64 Ohio River Bridge, IN

Suspension Bridges

Cables

(thousands of steel wires) under tension

Towers under compression
Require anchorages at ends to resist span
deflection, bending of towers
Best for spans of > 3000.

Suspension BridgesExamples

Luding Iron-chain Bridge,

Over Dadu River, China
(1705-06)

Menai Suspension Bridge,

United Kingdom (1826),
Removed from service in 1940

Suspension BridgesExamples

Humber Bridge,
England
Golden Gate Bridge,CA

Brooklyn Bridge, NY

Tacoma Narrows Bridge Failure

Galloping Gertie

After Failure

Approach Span, After Failure

Replacement Bridge

Cable-Stayed Bridges

Cables

under tension
Towers, deck under compression (w/post-tensioning)
No end anchorages, require less cable, and are faster to
build than suspension bridges
Best for spans of 1000 to 3000.

Cable-Stayed BridgesExamples

Sunshine Skyway, FL

Clark Bridge, IL

Normandy Bridge, France

Puente del V Centerario

Seville, Spain

Cable-Stayed BridgesExamples

Footbridge, Aarhus, Denmark

Santarem-Almeirim
Bridge, Portugal
Salzburg, Austria

Cable-Stayed BridgesExamples
Leonard P. Zakim Bunker Hill
Bridge,
Over Charles River
Boston, MA

Bridge BasicsMaterials
Past

Stone
Timber*
Iron
Present

Steel*
Steel-Reinforced Concrete
Prestressed Concrete*

Future
Those with asterisks
Fiber-Reinforced

Polymers (FRPs)
???

Bridge MaterialsFRP

No-Name Creek
Bridge, Kansas

Wickwire Run Bridge,

West Virginia

FootbridgesEntirely FRP
Fiberline
Bridge,
Denmark

Aberfeldy
Footbridge,
Scotland

Parsons Bridge,
Wales

Modern Timber Bridges

Gluelam Beams & Arches

Short lengths of treated wood
bonded with epoxy
Stiff, strong components
Custom designed off-site
Natural, aesthetic appearance

Keystone Wye Bridge,

South Dakota, 1968

Unknown

Modern Timber Bridges

Wisconsin River Bridge

Steel
rod
anchorage

Stress-Laminated Bridge
Decks
Short lengths of treated
wood run lengthwise
Steel or FRP rods crosswise
through holes in deck
Stressing the rods puts steel
in tension, timber in
compression. Creates
strong, stiff deck.

Summary/Questions
Four main factors define a bridge

Span (simple, continuous, cantilever)

Travel surface (deck, pony, through)
Form (beam, arch, truss, etc.)
Material (timber, concrete, steel)
Each is suitable for different sites/conditions
What factors affect the selection/design of a

bridge?