Curved Steel Box-Girder Bridges: A Survey

A summary of responses to a questionnaire sent to bridge designers and owners in the United States, Great Britain, Europe, Japan, and Canada is presented. Features of the response include overall geometry of the structures, such as radii and span lengths. Other information, such as bearing design, diaphragms and special construction considerations, is also considered. Empirical equations are fitted to the data to define the enclosed area of box and area of bottom flange plate at supports of continuous spans. Specific details as to stiffening and the influence of fatigue are discussed. This paper provides a summary of many of the aspects involved in the design of curved box girders, with the intention that this information will aid in the development of future designs when this category of structure is selected.