STRESS HISTORIES FOR HIGHWAY BRIDGES SUBJECTED TO TRAFFIC LOADING

An investigation of the dynamic response of three continuous highway bridges subjected to both a standard test vehicle and traffic loadings has been conducted. Comprehensive studies of bridge response under traffic loadings were made using data from over 2700 heavy truck traffic crossings; in addition, deterministic studies of bridge behavior were made using data from some 130 test runs with the FHWA vehicle. The experimental data consists of the vehicle characteristics and sets of strain and deflection records for each truck describing the time-history of response at selected locations on the bridge. A comprehensive summary of results and interpretation is presented.