Vibration of Pedestrian Overpass

Abstract

The levels of vibration induced by pedestrian traffic on a pedestrian overpass with a 43.3‐m (142‐ft) main span are found to be perceptible to its users. The maximum root‐mean‐square (RMS) acceleration measured in the field exceeds the acceptable level of vibration recommended by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI). Three structural modification schemes, proposed to alleviate the vibration serviceability problem, are analyzed and compared. The comparison is based on the acceleration response to pedestrian loading represented by a pulsating load traveling across the bridge span. It is found that adding viscoelastic structural dampers is the more efficient and preferable scheme of modification for reducing the pedestrian‐induced vibrations.