Full Use of Arching in Deck Slabs (Available only in Structural Engineering Special Issue)

The use of arching concrete deck slabs allows engineers to safely reduce the amount of reinforcement at a significant overall cost savings. Engineers with the Ministry of Transportation of Ontario, Canada, have developed innovative techniques to arch deck slabs and greatly reduce or completely eliminate the need for expensive reinforcing bar in some applications. Estimates place the construction cost savings resulting from the use of these designs annually in Ontario at about $1 million (Canadian). Many of the empirical design methods are finding acceptance in U.S. design codes.