Structure Identification and Load Capacity Rating of Veteran's Memorial Curved Steel Box Girder Bridge

Abstract

Veteran's Memorial Bridge is a curved steel box girder bridge located in Tallahassee, Florida. A structural system identification procedure through field test and analysis was developed for the bridge. A bridge capacity rating is included. The tests include a bending test, a shear test, and a structural system test. Test and analytical results indicate (a) nearly all concrete areas of the bridge deck and barriers are composite with the steel box girders and effectively resist both bending and shear forces, (b) the shear capacity at the end abutment is much higher than that predicted by current AASHTO Guide Specifications for Horizontally Curved Highway Bridges, and (c) the bridge behaves predictably. On the basis of test and theoretical results, a reliable analytic model was developed. Load ratings for 13 types of trucks permitted in Florida were performed according to the identified analytical model. Rating results show that the operating rating loads evaluated on the basis of the identified model are greater by approximately 43% than those obtained on the basis of current AASHTO guide specifications. The operating rating factor for the HS20–44 vehicle based on the identified model is 38% greater than that obtained in 1997. The rating procedures presented are instructive and can be used in bridge load-rating activities.