Washington State Department of Transportation Plan for Accelerated Bridge Construction

Abstract

The need for accelerated bridge construction (ABC) arises from the increases in traffic congestion over the past few decades and the corresponding costs and safety issues manifest in many forms, including exposure of workers to traffic hazards and waste of time caused by delays. Prefabricated bridge components are in increasing demand for ABC. Precasting eliminates the need to form, cast, and cure concrete in the work zones, making bridge construction safer and improving quality and durability. Precast bridges consisting of pretensioned girders, post-tensioned spliced girders, trapezoidal open-box girders, and other types of superstructure members are often used for ABC; however, bridge engineers are concerned about the durability and performance of bridges made of precast members in areas of high and moderate seismicity. Starting in 2008, the Washington State Department of Transportation (DOT) initiated a practice development and implementation for ABC. Washington State DOT has established a task force headed by an ABC advisory committee to develop standards, guidelines, and key policies for implementing structure design for ABC.