Engineering researchers at The University of Alabama are testing massive concrete girders to find ways for bridges to span longer distances with fewer supports underneath. The researchers are testing concrete girders that can span 180 feet — about 15 feet longer than the longest concrete girders currently used in Alabama.
Longer girders could result in lower construction costs, less disturbances over water and less disruption of traffic below bridges that sit over city streets.
At the completion of the two-year project with the Alabama DOT researchers should have recommendations on how to design and build these longer concrete girders.
