Page 127 - Bridge and Highway Structure Rehabilitation and Repair

102 SECTION 1 ADMINISTRATIVE ISSUES

Table 3.9 Failures due to accidents or impact from vehicles (human error).
U.S. Bridges Location Year Reasons of Failure
Goose River Bridge Rockport, Maine 1947 Truck impact on truss

Truss bridge over Milwaukee River Trenton, Wisconsin 1980 Truck impact on main truss
Truss bridge Shepherdsville, Kentucky 1989 Litter collector was higher than bridge clearance
Historic Tewksbury Township Hunterdon County, 2001 Truck struck the bridge abutment and caused its
pony truss bridge New Jersey collapse
Highway 14 overpass over I-45 60 miles south of Dallas, Texas2002 Truck slammed into overpass, causing bridge collapse

I-95 bridge Bridgeport, Connecticut 2004 Car collided with oil tanker, causing fi re
German Bridges

2-span bridge over motorway A2 Near Dortmund 1979 Truck high speed impact on piers —accident

2-span composite bridge over Near Duisburg 1979 Crane on back of lorry frees itself and impacts bridge
motorway A3 deck—overload accident
2-span continuous composite bridge Near Sittensen 1979 Truck looses control, impact on pier —accident
over motorway A1
Suspension bridge over Near Münster 1980 Truck impact on hanger due to ice—design failure
Dortmund-Ems Canal
Bridge over Mittlerer Ring Munich 1981 Self-erected skip on dump truck impact—overload
accident

British Bridges
Bridge over M62 motorway Near Manchester, England 1975 Impact of crane on road below—accident

Historic wood and metal bridge Codsall Railway Station, 2005 The bridge collapsed after being hit by a maintenance
Staffordshire, England vehicle—accident.

3.10.2 Suggested Preventive Action against Train Collision
1. Slowing down of trains to prevent derailment.
2. Better coordination between train drivers and station masters at bridge approaches.
3. Railway engineers to study causes of failures and incorporate changes in operations criteria.

3.11 VEHICLE IMPACT AND PREVENTIVE ACTION
Table 3.9 shows failure details of numerous truck and vehicle impacts on superstructures
or substructures that can be minimized by taking necessary precautions.

3.11.1 Minimum Vertical Under Clearance Is a Bottleneck for Truck Traffi c
AASHTO requirements are to use 16 feet 6 inches vertical under clearance. Many old
bridges in the U.S. and abroad do not meet this requirement. Newer model trucks at times get
stuck under the girders causing serious damage to the bridge and the truck.