CHAPTER 1.

CONCEPTUAL
DESIGN
 The purpose of a The types of
bridge is to carry traffic consist of
traffic over an pedestrians,
opening or vehicle, pipeline,
discontinuity in cable, water and
the landscape. trains.

1. INTRODUCTION
Building a bridge
A bridge should
is not initiated by
be safe,
the engineer. It is
functional,
planned by the
economical and
master plan of a
good looking.
city or country.
 Conceptual: At this stage
Preliminary: Select the
the objective is to
best scheme, make a
propose different bridge
feasibility study and
schemes and decide one
2. FOUR STAGES or more final concept.
refine its costs estimates.

OF A BRIDGE
DESIGN Detailed: Finalize all the
Construction: Provide
details of the bridge
step-by-step procedures
structure so that the
of how the bridge is
bridge is ready to be
going to be built.
built.
 Some of the typical design
criteria of a bridge are:
• Specifications and codes.
3. • Characteristics of the traffic.
ESTABLISHING • Clearances.
• Navigation clearances.
CRITERIA • Enviromental effects (Earthquake, wind,
flood, etc.)
• Geological formation and soil conditions.
• Economic conditions or funding.
• Expectations of the stakeholders.
4. Characteristics of Bridge Structures
4.1 Bridge Types
• Girder Bridge
• Arch Bride
• Clabe Stayed Bridge
• Suspension Bridge
4.2 BASIC STRUCTURAL ELEMENTS
 4.4 MAXIMUM POSSIBLE SPAN (SUSPENSION
BRIDGES)
• Assuming the sag to be 1/8 of
the span.
• Assuming that the live load and
the weight of the girder are
equal to the 20% of the weight
of the cable.
• Assuming an allowable stress of
860 MPa.
• We can get a maximum span of
8000 m
 4.4 MAXIMUM POSSIBLE SPAN (ARCH BRIDGES)

• Assuming that the live load and the

girder weight are equal to the 30%
of the arch rib weight.
• Assuming a rise to span ratio of 1/5.
• Using a Steel with a yield stress of
560 MPa.
• We get a maximum span of 4200 m.
 4.4 MAXIMUM POSSIBLE SPAN (CABLE-STAYED
BRIDGES)
• Assuming a radial pattern.
• Assuming that the live load and the
superimposed dead load on the deck
are equal to the 20% of the girder
weight.
• Assuming an allowable stress of 336
MPa.
• We get a maximum span of 5500 m.
4.4 MAXIMUM POSSIBLE SPAN
5. DESIGN PROCESS
• Load Path: Load must be transferred from the deck to the
foundation. Therefore, the designer has to pay attention to the
connections.
• Taking Advantage of Redundancy: The designer can alter the
stress distribution in a statically indeterminate structure.
• Prestressing and Load Balancing: We can use it to balance the
dead load.
• Live Loads and Other Loads: The effect of these loads must be
anticipated to get an estimate of their magnitude in a
conceptual design.
• Earthquake and Wind: These are two types of load the bridge
has to endure. The earthquake induces displacements to the
bridge foundation and the wind induces aerodynamic forces on
the bridge structure.
6. CONCEPTUALIZATION

• Deriving a New Bridge Concept: A

new design is the result of the
selection among possible options to
arrive at a concept that satisfies all
the conditions.
• Application of a Preexisting Concept:
We can use preexisting bridge
concepts that we have found
interesting and with certain
modifications we can apply it to our
Project.