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The Girder Bridge
The girder is the simple form of beam bridge.
From approximately 1915 through 1955, the most common type of highway
bridge built throughout much of the United States was the steel girder
bridge. Originally wood, girders then were made from iron or steel, or
even reinforced concrete.
Following World War II and the expansion of highways, steel and
concrete girder bridges became commonplace.
Two basic types of girder bridges may be explained.
First is the I-beam, and the second is the box.
The I-beam consists of two flanges (top and bottom plates) welded to the
web (side plate. The box girder is formed by four plates welded into a box shape, with
flanges on top and bottom, and the webs forming the sides. The other, less-used girders, take the shape of the Greek letter pi
or the capital “T.”
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This
is actually two girder bridges across the Raritan River at Woodbridge and
Sayreville, New Jersey. The far bridge is the Ellis Vieser Bridge
carrying southbound traffic. The near one, carrying northbound
traffic, is the revamped Edison Bridge, named after the inventor.
The original Edison Bridge became, in the words of New Jersey Department
of Transportation, "geometrically and structurally obsolete." |
| For more girder bridges, click on
the following pages: Girder 1 |
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All text and
images copyright (c) Steven M. Richman 2000-2004. All rights reserved. |
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