BRIDGES

A bridge is a structure that provides a passage over an obstacle such as a body of water, valley, a road
without obstructing the path beneath. It serves various purposes depending on the need for its
construction which may be for a road, railway, pedestrians, valley crossing.

Despite bridges having significant importance it is very important to keep in mind the type of bridge
which is to be constructed in that area, during investigation of the area different factors need to be
studied before construction such as the abutment rocks, foundation rocks and so on which in turn will
determine the type of bridge that is to be built.

There are a number of problems peculiar to bridges. First, as a sizeable part of the ground is concealed
under water, the knowledge of the geological condition of the foundation can be gained only by
drilling and extrapolation based on an in-depth study of the banks. Second, the valley is filled with
sediments of all kinds-gravels, sands, clays and muck, depending on the stage of maturity of the river
which have variable bearing capacity, Third, the load (weight) of the bridge and its supports are acting
on a restricted area. Commonly, this load is transmitted through the structural design to the
abutments so that the latter have to be very strong and stable Fourth, the bridge structure stands on
a waterway-indeed as an obstruction-and withstands the action of the flowing water, which is swift
and scouring during floods. The magnitude of erosion caused by the water flowing through the
reduced cross-sectional area under the bridge depends on velocity, freak discharge, highwater period,
and eddy generation. one of the considerations is the likelihood of the submergence of the bridge;
during floods, and the resultant threat of destabilization. The 370 m long bridge on tie Narmada River
near Jabalpur, for example, has been submerged wide valleys filled with sediments, there is always a
possibility of the existence of buried channels, pot holes, cavities and depressions, In depth
investigations, therefore, have to be carried out to identify and locate them. The bridge on the
Bilaspur_Jagdalpur highway (M.P.), for example, passes through a karstic terrain in which flows the
sheonath River near Bilaspur, and Indravati River near Jagdalpur, the bridge site revealing all these
infirmities pronouncedly. Thus a bridge must be safeguarded against erosion by rivers, damage by
Landslides and rockfalls, and foundation failures due to the presence of weakness planes or pockets
of infirmities. This calls for thorough prior appraisal of the overall foundation conditions, including
presence or otherwise of pockets of sulphides and salts, cavities, shattered rocks, presence of harder
rocks over weaker layers, rock heterogeneity, zones of weathering, etc. The safety of bridges depends
on the identification of these features and effective remedial measures.

Types of Bridges
There are six major types of bridge designs based on their support mechanism; Beam bridges,
Truss bridges, Arch Bridges, Cantilever bridges, Suspension bridges & Cable-stayed bridges.
The following gives a description of each type of bridges suggested above:
a) Beam/Girder bridges
 Multispan plate girder bridge deck on concrete
Also known as a girder piers
bridge, this is the simplest type of bridge which can be constructed as
it uses the support of an abutment or girders at each end. In other types of bridges such as
truss or arch types a girder is still the main support for the deck (roadway or walkway surface)
but the load is applied on the foundation through the truss or arch structure therefore
however then it no longer becomes a true girder bridge.
b) Truss bridges

Queen post truss bridge King post truss bridge

These bridges behave like beam bridges as it carries the load by bending, in this type of bridge
the load-bearing super structure(upward extension of an existing structure above a baseline)
is consisting of a truss framework. This is comprised by many small beams which can support
a large amount of weight and span large distances. Used commonly as railway bridges over
waterways.
The two most common truss designs are the King posts (two diagonal posts supported by
single vertical post in the center) and the queen posts (two diagonal posts two vertical posts
an a horizontal post that connect two vertical post at the top).

c) Arch bridges

Arch bridges use arch as a main component. The core component of the bridge is its
abutments and pillars, which have to be built strong because they will carry the weight of the
entire bridge structure and forces they convey. The abutment at each end is spanned by a
single long arch or can consist of multiple arches. The structure provides high resistance to
bending forces due to its curved structure, when a load is placed on the bridge horizontal
forces are being applied on the support.
d) Cantilever bridges

Howrah bridge in Kolkata having a suspended span over the river

A cantilever bridge is a bridge which uses a long projecting beam or girder fixed spanned at
only one end. Usually consists of three spans anchor spans towards the abutments which are
anchored deep within the foundation and a suspended span at the end of two cantilevers
generally acts as a truss or a support beam.
e) Suspension bridges

The Akashki Kaikyo bridge in Japan, world’s longest main span

It is a bridge where the deck is hung below suspended cables on vertical towers. The load
placed on the deck is transferred through these anchorages which are in tension which then
applies a load on the suspended towers to the ground.
 f) Cable-stayed bridg

Atal Setu bridge in Goa,India

In a cable-stayed bridge, the loads on the deck are carried by cables, the tower transfers the
cable forces to the foundation by vertical compression, the difference between a cable-stayed
& a suspension bridge is that the cables stretch diagonally and support the deck in a fan-like
pattern.
Geological Considerations for bridge construction
The geologic characteristics of the area need to be studied thoroughly before construction of
the bridge, during investigation it is important to keep in mind the depth and nature of the
bedrock as well as structural disposition of the foundation rocks. In arch type bridges they can
only be built where the ground or foundation is solid and stable because unlike girder and
truss bridges, both ends of an arch are fixed in the horizontal direction in which maximum
force is being applied, Therefore it is important to perform a geological survey of the area so
that the type of bridge suitable for stability and sustainability can be determined properly.