Accelerated Bridge Construction

Accelerated Bridge Construction (ABC) is a process in which engineers try to minimize the impact of the duration of bridge construction on the surrounding traffic flow.

In the process, many construction activities are shifted off-site to reduce traffic over-crowding.

Here we will learn about accelerated bridge construction, types of accelerated bridge construction, its advantages & disadvantages.

Introduction to Accelerated Bridge Construction:

In the ABC approach, these members are placed off-site and then moved to / in place and assembled in a few hours/days.

Therefore, this method is substantial time savings and also introduces higher safety to workers involved in construction and reduces the construction waste.

For example: Concrete members are cast/fabricated off-site then transported and assembled at bridge location in such way that it saves a substantial amount of time as compared to typical construction activities.

According to the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), the loss of the bridge during construction may result in more than the actual cost of the structure.

Therefore, this method is becoming popular because traditional construction methods will be very expensive and inconvenient for the public.

Types of Accelerated Bridge Constructions:

The ABC construction method can be categorized as follows:

Partial ABC: In these types of construction, no formwork is required.

Fully ABC: In these types of construction, few elements are prefabricated and others are partially assembled in the factory.

Super ABC: In these types of construction, the entire system components of the structures have been fully assembled on site.

Advantages of Accelerated Bridge Construction:

Following are the advantages of ABC, as follows:

Improved safety: By using ABC, we can reduce the time to build or repair a bridge which reduces the risk of car accidents in working areas.

Increased Durability: ABC has the ability to resist weathering, chemical attack, friction and degradation.

Shorter delivery times: ABC technologies significantly reduces the climatic delays and on-site construction time.

Additionally, it avoids diversions, road closures, and cuts traffic numbers for a long time.

Cost Reduction: ABC significantly reduces construction costs, irrespective of the type of ABC technology used.

Reduced environmental impact: By limiting the time spent on-site in building the bridge, impacts on the environment is also minimized.

Disadvantages of Accelerated Bridge Construction:

1. Heavy traffic problems, gasoline wastage, and loss of labor hours are major problems.
2. Maintenance of the bridges requires large funds.
3. The bridge undergoes simple faults and damage for its maintenance need to close the highway for a long time.
4. ABC management system requires innovative planning.

Also read: Cantilever Bridge, Cooling Tower & Spillway

Conclusion:

Accelerated bridge construction (ABC) offers several advantages over traditional bridge construction.

Those benefits include reduced traffic impact, onsite construction time, environmental impact, life-cycle costs, improved work area safety, site-building ability, material quality and product durability.