RATING BRIDGES FOR SPECIAL PERMIT LOADINGS WITH CONSIDERATIONS OF FUTURE LIFE--CASE STUDIES

Special permit loads continue to get heavier and more numerous with each passing year. This paper describes case studies of special analyses for heavy permit loads resulting either in 1) tables of permissible Gross Vehicle Weights (GVW) for vehicles of special interest and rules-of-thumb for particular bridges to be used by toll takers, or 2) tables of permissible Gross Vehicle Weights (GVW) for vehicles of special interest and bridge-specific computer programs to be used by permit officers. These studies have had considerations for fatigue of special details or typical details based on use history for the particular bridges as indicated in toll records or ADT and loadometer studies.