The developed works are focused on the inspection, analysis, diagnosis, repair project and Technical Assistance during the rehabilitation of the Steel Bridge of Zaragoza. The Steel Bridge is one of the important bridges over the Ebro River in the city of Zaragoza, due to the following facts:.
It was the second bridge built in the city for road traffic; the first one was the Stone Bridge, which was erected 455 years before.
For 72 years, together with the Stone Bridge, was the only possibility for the traffic to cross the Ebro River in the city of Zaragoza, until the building of Santiago Bridge.
It should be pointed out that this structure was designed for very different operating conditions from the current ones (load, traffic intensity, etc.). Moreover, after a long lifespan (about 120 years), the current state (materials, structural configuration, including geometry) has changed from the original one.
Due to all of this, it is necessary to carry out a structural assessment of the bridge taking its current state into consideration.
The carried out works are the following ones:
- Analysis of the available information of the bridge.
- Inspection of abutments, wing-walls and access embankments.
- Inspection of different steel structural elements of the bridge which play a key role in the carrying capacity, both original ones and the ones as result of the different reparations along the years.
- Characterization of the different structural elements of the bridge, sitting up especially to steel.
- Inspection of the deck board (pavement, expansion-joints, etc.).
- Inspection of the drainage system.
- Inspection of the deck infrastructure.
- Structural assessment for different loads and expected uses.
- Sizing of the structural elements required for the bridge rehabilitation.
- Economic assessment of the defined actions, considering all the means of access and suggestion of specific studies.
