Enhancement of bridge live loads based on West Virginia weigh-in-motion data

Abstract

This paper presents the development of two weigh-in-motion (WIM) systems in West Virginia to provide site-specific traffic data that can be employed for bridge design and evaluation. The paper discusses the traffic spectra measured in both sites to evaluate the design of live load trucks and discusses the possible enhancement of bridge live loads using the WIM data. The data indicated that the current truck loads are heavier than the AASHTO specified loads. A fatigue design truck model has been developed based on the WIM data. The WIM enhanced fatigue design truck loading was found to be 31% heavier than the HL-93 AASHTO design truck. The data can also be used by bridge engineers and researchers to build a nationwide traffic spectra that would yield a new live load model in future AASHTO editions.