Abstract: Automobile accident reports and full-scale crash tests of existing breakaway cable terminals (BCTs) indicated their poor performance during end-on impacts. This paper presents results of a feasibility study, which was ...

Abstract: Several full-scale load tests were performed on a selected Florida highway bridge. The bridge was dynamically excited by two fully loaded trucks, and the strain, acceleration, and displacement at selected points were ...

Abstract: Bridge fender systems are used to guide vessels through navigational channels under bridges. They appear to be an attractive and inexpensive solution for protecting the integrity of bridge piers. However, until now the ...

Abstract: Fender systems between channel piers are currently required by the U.S. Coast Guard for guidance of vessels under bridges. Because their only function is to guide the vessels through navigational channels under the bridges, ...

Abstract: Results from experimental testing of three permit vehicles are presented in the paper. The selected heavy vehicles, which require permits from state DOTs, included two tractor-trailer systems and a midsize crane. The ...

Abstract: Several accidents in which vessels impacted bridges have led to significant improvement of design procedures for impact protection of bridge piers. However, the guidelines usually call for such expensive solutions as piers ...

Abstract: The paper presents an experimental study of the actual dynamic effects for a preselected typical highway bridge. Knowledge of the dynamic impact factors is important for accurate determination of the ultimate load capacity ...