Networking & Refreshment Break

Examining The Blueprint For Surface Transportation Investment And Reform

• Providing an update on state transportation spending levels
• Reporting and showing lessons learned form Recovery Act implementation
• Discussing the state of current surface transportation and bridge funding, including Federal Highway Trust Fund conditions
• Providing AASHTO’s funding and financing framework for the next six years
• Giving the latest update on current program extensions and SAFETEALU reauthorization

- Joung Lee   Associate Director for Finance and Business Development, Aashto

Innovative Design Techniques And Building Sustainable Bridgest

• Developing bridge concepts considering project requirements, site condition, available materials, constructability and maintenance
• Paying close attention to aerodynamic stability and human induced vibration if unique structural system is used
• Creating better structural design with the help of 3-D modeling
• Developing lighting scheme to enhance nighttime appearance
• Designing construction sequences with consideration of contractors’ capabilities

- Ignacio Barandiaran   Project Director, ARUP

Implementing Best Practice Maintenance Regimes For Bridges

• Ensuring your operational costs remain balanced and minimizing costs of up keeping the infrastructure.
• Ensuring the value of your asset remains economically sustainable
• Outlining maintenance procedures that are necessary to mitigate a major accident or hazard
• Implementing modern maintenance and engineering practices to improve the bridge infrastructure
• Taking a long term approach to asset maintenance and identifying appropriate service levels to improve your decision making

Learning From Shake Table Tests Of Three, 110'-Long, 4- Span Bridge Models With Conventional And Innovative Materials

• Three bridge models each supported on three, two-column bents were tested under simulated earthquakes to failure
• Bridge-abutment interaction was included in the tests using hydraulic actuators at the ends of the bridge
• The earthquake motions simulated the 1994 Northridge earthquake
• Conventional reinforced concrete piers were used in one bridge model, but the other two incorporated innovative materials such as shape memory alloys, fiber concrete, built-in elastomeric pads, glass and carbon fiber composites, and precast columns

- Dr. Mehdi Saiidi   Professor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Nevada, Reno