CHAPTER FOUR

Loads and Load Distribution

4.1 INTRODUCTION
Bridge structures are designed to carry traffic during their service lives.
Bridge loads are actions in the form of forces, deformations, or accelerations
applied to a structure or its components. The load acting on the bridge struc-
tures are generally divided into two categories: (1) those acting on the super-
structure, and (2) those acting on the substructure. The major load
components of highway bridges are dead load, live load (static and dynamic),
environmental loads (temperature, wind, and earthquake), and other loads
(collision, emergency braking).
The classifications of the load could be different according to the design
specifications, but can be roughly divided into predominant (primary) load
and subordinate (secondary) load. The load applied on bridge structures can
also be classified as static load and dynamic load, as well as the concentrated
load and distributed load etc.
Taking the Japan design load as an example, four load systems were
divided according to the Standard Specification of Highway Bridges of Japan
Road Association. They are:
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1. Principal loads (P)—dead load (D), live load (L), impact load (I), pres-
tressed forces (PS), concrete creep (CR), drying shrinkage (SH), earth
pressure (E), hydraulic pressure (HP), and buoyancy or uplift (U).
2. Subordinate loads (S)—wind load (W), temperature change (T), and
earthquakes (EQ).
3. Special loads corresponding to principal loads (PP)—snow load (SW), influ-
ence of ground displacement (GD), influence of support displacement
(SD), wave pressure (WP), and centrifugal force (CF).
4. Special loads corresponding to subordinate loads (PA)—braking force (BK),
erection load (ER), collision force (CO), others.

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 72 Bridge Engineering

According to the bridge location and bridge type, the above mentioned
loads should be selected appropriately during the structural design and
analysis, but not necessarily consider all the loads. Major loads considered
in the bridge design are discussed below.

4.2 DEAD LOAD

Gravity loads of constant magnitudes and fixed positions act perma-
nently on the structure. Such loads consist of the weights of the structural
system itself and of all other material and equipment permanently attached
to the structural system. In the bridge design, the dead load denotes the con-
stant load in a bridge due to the weight of the members, the supported struc-
ture, and permanent attachments or accessories. To be specific, the dead load
in a bridge include: (1) Facilities and additives (or accessories) on the bridge,
such as guardrail, lamp standard etc.; (2) Self-weight of the deck system, such
as deck, pavement, and pedestrian etc., (3) Self-weight of the floor system,
such as stringer, transverse beam etc., and (4) Self-weight of the main girder
or main structure system, including the floor beam etc. Although it is pos-
sible to determine (1) and (2) before the main structure design, it is hard to
determine (3) and (4) before the final design of the main girder. Typical spe-
cific weights of different materials are summarized in Table 4.1.

4.3 LIVE LOAD

Live load in bridge design generally refers to loads due to moving vehi-
cles that are dynamic, or the loads that change their positions with respect to
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time. This is unlike building structure, where live loads are the occupancy
loads, which are considered as static load (Taly and Taly, 1997). The live load
has been increasing with the progress of time. For modern bridges, their

Table 4.1 Specific Weight of Different Materials (kN/m3) (JRA, 2012)

Material Unit Weight Material Unit Weight
Steel 77 Concrete 23
Cast iron 71 Cement mortar 21
Aluminum 27.5 Wood 8.0
Reinforced concrete 24.5 Bituminous material 11
(water proofing)
Prestressed concrete 24.5 Asphalt pavement 22.5

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 Loads and Load Distribution 73

service lives are generally decades or even more than a hundred years. There-
fore, the appropriate calculations or predictions for future service loads are
necessary. Furthermore, the position of a live load may change, so each
member of the structure must be designed for the position of the load that
causes the maximum internal sectional forces inducing maximum stress in
that member.
For highway bridges, the live load includes the vehicle load and sidewalk
load. The live load generally varies according to bridge locations and the
traffic conditions of the oversize vehicles. The design live load is diverse
for different design specifications, and some representative live loads used
in the engineering practice are listed below.

4.3.1 Live Load in US Specification

In the United States, the design vehicular live load is divided into three cat-
egories, namely (1) design truck load, (2) design tandem load, and (3) design
lane load.
The design truck specified in AASHTO Load and Resistance Factor
Design (2007) are shown in Fig. 4.1. The weight of the front axle is
35,000 N with double rear axles weighing 145,000 N, respectively. The
spacing between the two 145,000 N axles needs to be varied from 4300
to 9000 mm to produce the extreme force effects. The tire contact area
of a wheel consisting of one or two tires is assumed to be a single rectangle
with 510 mm in width and 250 mm in length.
The design tandem consists of a pair of 110,000 N axles spaced 1200 mm
apart, with a transverse spacing of 1800 mm for the wheels. With regard to
the design lane load, a uniformly distributed load of 9.3 N/mm shall be
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applied in the longitudinal direction with a width of 3000 mm in the trans-

verse direction.

600 mm general
1800 mm 300 mm deck overhang

4300 mm 4300–9000 mm Design lane 3600 mm

Fig. 4.1 Design truck in AASHTO LRFD Bridge Design Specifications (AASHTO, 2007).

Lin, W., & Yoda, T. (2017). Bridge engineering : Classifications, design loading, and analysis methods. Elsevier Science & Technology.
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 74 Bridge Engineering

In the design, the following loading conditions shall be considered to

produce the extreme force effects: (1) the effects of the design tandem
together with the design lane load, (2) the effects of one design truck with
the variable axle spacing plus the design lane load, and (3) for negative bend-
ing moment regions, 90% of the effects of two design trucks with a mini-
mum spacing of 15,000 mm between the lead axles of one truck and the
rear axle of the other truck, plus the 90% of the effects of the design lane
load. In this case, the spacing between the two 145,000 N axles is taken
as 4300 mm.

4.3.2 Live Load in Japanese Specification

Both truck load and lane load used in Japan bridge design specification are
shown in Figs. 4.2 and 4.3, respectively. The truck load, also denoted as
T-load, is mainly used for designing the deck systems. The lane load, or
L-load, is mainly used for designing the main girders.
For the lane load, the distributed load of p1 and p2 are taken based on the
loading conditions of the oversized vehicles. A-Type live load is used
for municipal roads with a small number of oversize vehicles, while the
B-Type live load is used for national highway, a prefectural road (highway),
and a main (principal, trunk) road with large number of oversize vehicles.
In addition, the loading intensities of p1 and p2 also vary according to the
internal forces including shear force or bending moment, as indicated in
Table 4.2.
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Longitudinal direction 2750 mm

200 kN
200

100 kN 100 kN

500

500 500
Fig. 4.2 T-load in Japanese bridge design specification (unit: mm).

Lin, W., & Yoda, T. (2017). Bridge engineering : Classifications, design loading, and analysis methods. Elsevier Science & Technology.
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 Loads and Load Distribution 75

1
2

2 1

Fig. 4.3 L-load in Japanese bridge design specification.

Table 4.2 Distributed Load Intensities of the Lane Load

Live Load on Main Lanes (Width: 5.5 m)
Uniform Load p1 Uniform Load p2
(kN/m2) (kN/m2)
Load For For Live Load
Length Bending Shear on Secondary
Load D (m) Moment Force L ≤ 80 80 < L ≤ 130 130 ≤ L Lanes
A-Live 6 10 12 3.5 4.3–0.01 L 3.0 50% of live
Load load on
B-Live 10 main lanes
Load

4.3.3 Live Load in British Specification

In the British standard code for the design and construction of steel, con-
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crete, and composite bridge (BS 5400-2, 2006), two types of loading are
generally considered in the design of highway bridge including HA and
HB types of loading. Both HA and HB loading includes the effect of impact
for which the HA loading represents normal traffic effect and HB loading
represents abnormal vehicle unit loading effect. The HA loading is the com-
bination of uniform distributed load (UDL) with knife edge load (KEL), or a
single nominal wheel load. The UDL has the magnitude depending on the
loaded length specified in the standard and defined by the influence line ana-
lyses while the KEL has a magnitude of 120 kN per notional lane. The single
nominal wheel load is specified as a 100 kN load placed on the carriageway
and uniformly distributed over a circular contact area assuming an effective
pressure of 1.1 N/mm2. The HB loading is a series of four axle loads in

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 76 Bridge Engineering

which each axle consists of four wheel load 1 m apart. Both, two front axles
and two back axles are 1.8 m apart with a set of variable distance between
second and third axle to produce the most critical effect. As specified in the
code, the minimum units to be considered are 25 and may go up to 45 if
directed by the appropriate authority. The BS5400 was replaced by the
Eurocodes for the newly designed bridges built after 2010 but still remains
as the basis of the assessment standards for the existing bridges.

4.3.4 Live Load in European Specification

The Eurocode EN 1991-2(2003) specifies four loading models to be con-
sidered as the road traffic effects for the ultimate limit states with particular
serviceability verifications. The Load Model1 (LM1) represents normal traf-
fic which consists of Tandem System (TS) with double-axle concentrate
loads 1.2 m apart (center to center) and UDL to include the effect of lorries
and cars. The LM1 should be used for both general and local verifications.
The TS and UDL have the intensity of αQQk (for each axle) and αqqk,
respectively. The adjustment factors αQ and αq are specified in the National
Annex. The Qk is distributed on two wheels 2 m apart (center to center)
over the contact surface of 0.4 m
0.4 m each. On each lane, only one
TS (as shown in Fig. 4.4) should be used with at most three loading lanes.
The intensity for each loading lane is specified in Table 4.3. The qk should
apply on all the unfavorite part of the influence surface, whose intensity is

1200
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2000
400

400

Fig. 4.4 Details of one single Tandem in Eurocode (unit: mm).

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 Loads and Load Distribution 77

Table 4.3 Intensity of Axle Load for TS

Tandem System (TS)
Lane Number Axle Load Qk (kN)
1 300
2 200
3 100
4 0

Table 4.4 Intensity of Uniform Distributed Load (UDL)

Uniform Distributed Load (UDL)
Lane Number (i) qk (kN/m2)
1 9
2 (and other remaining areas) 2.5

taken as 9 kN/m2 for the defined primary lane and 2.5 kN/m2 for the
remaining area as specified in Table 4.4.
Load Model 2 (LM2) is a single axle load applied on specific tyre contact
areas which covers the dynamic effects of the normal traffic on short
structural member (EN 1991-2, 2003). The load has a magnitude of βQQak
with Qak ¼ 400 kN, and βQ specified in the National Annex of each country
adopting the Eurocode. Load Model 3 (LM3) is a set of assemblies of axle
loads representing special vehicles (e.g., for industrial transport), which
can travel on routes permitted for abnormal loads. It is intended for general
and local verifications. Load Model 4 (LM4), generally known as crowd
loading is represented by a Load model consisting of a uniformly distributed
load (which includes dynamic simplification) equal to 5 kN/m2.
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4.3.5 Live Load in Chinese Specification

Both lane load and truck load are specified as live load in Chinese design spec-
ification, where the lane load is mainly used for designing the main girders,
while the truck load is mainly used for checking the safety of the bridge deck.
The lane load used in Chinese bridge design specification is shown in
Fig. 4.5, consisting of both concentrated load (Pk) and distributed load (qk).
In Chinese specification, two levels of highway including Grade A highway
(or highway-I) and Grade B highway (or highway-II) are classified. In the
design of Grade A highway, the distributed load (qk) is taken as 10.5 kN/m,
while the concentrated load (Pk) should be decided according to the length
of the bridge superstructure. For a bridge with a span length smaller than
5 m or larger than 50 m, the concentrated load should be taken as 180 kN

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 78 Bridge Engineering

Pk
qk

Fig. 4.5 Design lane load in Chinese specification.

and 360 kN, respectively. For a bridge span length from 5 to 50 m, the con-
centrated load is determined according to the first-order interpolation of
the bridge length. For the design of Grade B highway bridge, the load is taken
as 0.75 of the design load as specified for Grade A highway bridge.
The size dimension and transverse distribution of the design truck load
specified in Chinese design specification are shown in Figs. 4.6 and 4.7,
respectively.

4.4 IMPACT
When live loads are moving rapidly across a structure, they cause larger
stresses than those that would be produced if the same loads would have been
applied gradually due to the road roughness, expansion joint, and vibration of
the engine etc. This dynamic effect of the load is referred to as impact in the
bridge design. Live loads expected to cause such a dynamic effect on structures
are increased by impact factors. The stress increase due to the impact is taken
into account by using the following equation:
σ ¼ σ s + σ d ¼ σ s ð1 + iÞ (4.1)
where i is the impact factor.
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30 120 120 140 140

3.0 1.4 7.0 1.4

(A)
1.8

2.5

3.0 1.4 7.0 1.4

15.0

(B)
Fig. 4.6 Size dimensions of design truck in China (unit: m). (A) Front view. (B) Plan view.

Lin, W., & Yoda, T. (2017). Bridge engineering : Classifications, design loading, and analysis methods. Elsevier Science & Technology.
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 Loads and Load Distribution 79

2.5 0.6 2.5

1.8 1.3 1.8 0.5

Fig. 4.7 Transverse distribution of design truck in China (unit: m).

The impact factor of a bridge is closely related to the bridge span length,
structural type, the ratio between the dead load and the live load etc. In
Japanese bridge design specification, the impact factor is determined
according to the type of the bridges, as shown in Table 4.5. In addition,
the span length should be taken accordingly based on the bridge type and
structural type etc.

4.5 WIND
Wind loads are produced by the flow of wind around structures. In the
bridge design, the wind load is defined as the wind pressure on the bridge. Wind
load magnitudes vary with the peak wind speed, type of terrain etc. For large
span bridges, especially the cable-stayed bridge and suspension bridge, wind
load is an important design load and often play a critical role that affacts the
Table 4.5 Impact Factor in Japan Bridge Design Specification
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Bridge Type Impact Factor Note

20
Steel bridge i¼ Both truck load and lane load
50 + L

20
RC bridge i¼ Truck load
50 + L
7
i¼ Lane load
20 + L

20
PC bridge i¼ Truck load
50 + L
10
i¼ Lane load
25 + L

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 80 Bridge Engineering

strength, stiffness, and stability of the bridges. The significant role of wind
loads is more highlighted after it caused damages to a number of bridge struc-
tures, some even collapsed completely, e.g., Tacoma Narrows Bridge (1940).
The design wind load for static design used in Japan is given by the fol-
lowing formula (JRA, 2012):
1
p ¼ ρUd2 Cd G (4.2)
2
where ρ is the air density and generally taken as 1.23 kg/m3, Ud denotes the
design wind load (40 m/s), Cd stands for the drag coefficient, and G is the
gust factor.

4.6 TEMPERATURE
The change in temperature will cause the deformation of the bridge.
A determinate structure will expand or contract, but the strains generated
by the change in temperature will not cause stress in its structural members.
In an indeterminate structure, however, the stress caused by temperature
changes may be comparable to that caused by live load due to the traffic
(Catbas, 2008).
In general, two types of temperature including uniform change and gra-
dient change occur in the bridge structure. The year round temperature
change will result in uniform change, resulting in the bridge length change
along the axis direction. When such deformation is constrained, the temper-
ature induced forces (or thermal forces) will occur. On the other hand,
the gradient change in temperature is mainly due to the solar radiation
and the surrounding air. This will cause the nonlinear temperature change
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along the height direction, and results in stress on the section and further
secondary forces if constrained.

4.7 SEISMIC LOAD

Seismic loading is one of the basic concepts of earthquake engineering
which means application of a seismic oscillation to a structure. It happens at
contact surfaces of a structure either with the ground or with adjacent struc-
tures. Seismic loading depends, primarily on seismic hazard, geotechnical
parameters of the site, and structure’s natural frequency etc. There are hor-
izontal and vertical components of earthquake ground motions, but the
horizontal component of earthquake ground motion is the main cause of

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 Loads and Load Distribution 81

bridge damages. Therefore, only horizontal earthquake ground motion is

considered in the bridge design and analysis.
The basic seismic design philosophy for most of the codes is performance
based design or capacity design (Buckle, 1996). In the Japanese design spec-
ification, bridges are divided into two important categories: ordinary bridges
and important bridges. In the bridge design, the seismic performance of the
bridge under corresponding seismic load should be carefully checked. The
seismic design for highway bridges in Japan shall refer to the Part V (Seismic
Design) of “Specifications for Highway Bridges.”

4.8 SNOW AND ICE

In some places of the world, snow and ice are significant for consid-
erable period and this should be considered in the bridge design. This is espe-
cially for large span bridges, such as cable-stayed bridges or suspension
bridges, on which the snow is hard to be removed completely. In Japan,
there are two cases in which SW should be considered: (1) vehicles can
move freely on sufficiently compressed snow, or (2) vehicles cannot move
freely due to the heavy snow coverage. For the first case, the SW with thick-
ness of 150 mm is generally assumed and the load is taken as 1 kN/m2.
While, for the second case, the SW is determined according to the following
equation:
SW ¼ P
Zs (4.3)
2
where SW is the snow load (kN/m ), P is the mean weight of the snow
(kN/m3), and Zs denotes the design snow coverage depth (m). Although
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the weight of snow varies between regions and seasons, the design SW of
3.5 kN/m2 may be generally used.

4.9 CONSTRUCTION LOAD

Temporary forces occur during the bridge construction stage due to
the deadweight of the equipment or plant are called construction load. Con-
struction load is dependent on the construction method and is different in
each construction stage. Unconsidered construction load may cause the
buckling or even collapse of the bridge superstructure, or severe damage
of the substructure such as piers or foundations.

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 82 Bridge Engineering

4.10 CREEP AND SHRINKAGE OF CONCRETE

Creep and shrinkage are two physical properties of concrete. For
concrete bridge and steel-concrete composite bridge, the creep and SH
of concrete shall be considered in the design.
Creep in concrete is the tendency of concrete material to deform under
the influence of mechanical stresses. In ordinary bridge structures, the
sustained load induced stress is generally less than 40% of the compressive
strength of the concrete. If it is the case, the creep strain of the concrete
can be taken by using the following equation:
σc
εcc ¼ φ (4.4)
Ec
in which εcc, σ c, Ec, and φ are the creep strain, stress due to sustained load,
Young’s modulus, and creep coefficient, respectively.
There are two types of concrete shrinkage, including the shrinkage when
the moisture in the concrete dissipates to the outside to dry and the shrinkage
due to moisture consumption in the concrete by cement hydration (self-
shrinkage). Both of these shrinkages should be considered in the bridge design.

4.11 COMBINATION OF LOADS FOR BRIDGE DESIGN

Besides the loadings listed above, other loadings including the prestress,
braking force etc. should also be considered appropriately in the design and
structural analyses. In addition, different load combinations should be consid-
ered in the bridge design. A load combination sums or envelopes the analysis
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results of certain load cases. Taking the Japanese bridge design specification as
an example, the 10 load combinations and corresponding multiplier factors
specified in Table 4.6 should be used to check the safety of the bridge struc-
tures (Nagai et al., 2014).

4.12 EXERCISES

1. Describe the “four-load systems” in the standard specifications of high-

way bridges in Japan.
2. What is the difference between “T” load and “L” load?
3. Describe the “earthquake ground motions” and “seismic performances
requirement” used in the standard specifications of highway bridges.

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 Loads and Load Distribution 83

Table 4.6 Design Load Combinations Associated With Multiplier Factors

for Allowable Stress
No Load Combination Multiplier Factor
1 P + PP 1.00
2 P + PP + T 1.15
3 P + PP + W 1.25
4 P + PP + T + W 1.35
5 P + PP + BK 1.25
6 P + PP + CO 1.70 for steel members
1.50 for concrete members
7 P0 + EQ 1.50
8 W 1.20
9 BK 1.20
10 ER 1.25

REFERENCES
AASHTO, 2007. AASHTO LRFD Bridge Design Specifications. AASHTO, Washington, DC.
BS 5400-2, 2006. Steel, concrete and composite bridges. Specification for loads.
Buckle, L.G., 1996. Overview of the seismic design methods for bridges in different countries
and future directions. In: Eleventh World Engineering Conference on Earthquake
Engineering, Paper Number: 2113.
Catbas, F.N., Susoy, M., Frangopol, 2008. Structural health monitoring and reliability esti-
mation: long span truss bridge application with environmental monitoring data. Eng.
Struct. 30 (9), 2347–2359.
EN 1991-2, 2003. Eurocode 1: Actions on structures – Part 2: Traffic loads on bridges. CEN
(European Committee for Standardization), Brussels, Belgium.
Japan Road Association, 2012. Design Specification for Highway Bridges and Commentary,
Part I: Common Part, Part II: Steel Bridges. Japan Road Association, Tokyo, Japan
(Japanese).
Nagai, M., Okui, Y., Kawai, Y., Yamamoto, M., Saito, M., 2014. Bridge engineering in
Japan. In: Handbook of International Bridge Engineering. CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL.
Copyright © 2017. Elsevier Science & Technology. All rights reserved.

Taly, N., Taly, M., 1997. Design of Modern Highway Bridges. McGraw-Hill, New York, NY.

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