SECTION 3: LOADS AND LOAD FACTORS

3.6.1.3.3Design
g Loads ffor Decks, Deck Systems,
and the Top Slabs of Box Culverts
The provisions of this Article shall not apply to decks
designed under the provisions of Article 9.7.2, Empirical
Design.

Where the approximate strip method is used to

analyze decks and top slabs of culverts, force effects shall
be determined on the following basis:

Where the slab spans

p
pprimarilyy in the transverse
direction,, onlyy the axles of the design
g truck of Article
3.6.1.2.2 or design
g tandem of Article 3.6.1.2.3 shall be
applied
pp
to the deck slab or the top slab of box
culverts.

Where the slab spans primarily in the longitudinal

direction:
o

3-27

C3.6.1.3.3

This Article clarifies the selection of wheel loads to be

used in the design of bridge decks, slab bridges, and top
slabs of box culverts.
The design load is always an axle load; single wheel
loads should not be considered.
The design truck and tandem without the lane load
and with a multiple presence factor of 1.2 results in
factored force effects that are similar to the factored force
effects using earlier specifications for typical span ranges
of box culverts.
Individual Owners may choose to develop other axle
weights and configurations to capture the load effects of
the actual loads in their jurisdiction based upon local legalload and permitting policies. Triple axle configurations of
single unit vehicles have been observed to have load
effects in excess of the HL-93 tandem axle load.

p
For topp slabs of box culverts of all spans
and
for all other cases,, including
g slab-type
yp
bridges
g where the span
p does not exceed
15.0 ft,, onlyy the axle loads of the design
g
truck or design
g tandem of Articles 3.6.1.2.2
and 3.6.1.2.3, respectively, shall be applied.

o For all other cases,, includingg slab-type

yp
bridges
g ((excluding
g top
p slabs of box culverts))
where the span
p exceeds 15.0 ft,, all of the
load specified
p
in Article 3.6.1.2 shall be
applied.
Where the refined methods are used to analyze decks,
force effects shall be determined on the following basis:

Where the slab spans primarily in the transverse

direction, only the axles of the design truck of
Article 3.6.1.2.2 or design tandem of
Article 3.6.1.2.3 shall be applied to the deck slab.

Where the slab spans primarily in the longitudinal

direction (including slab-type bridges), all of the loads
specified in Article 3.6.1.2 shall be applied.

Wheel loads shall be assumed to be equal within an

axle unit, and amplification of the wheel loads due to
centrifugal and braking forces need not be considered for
the design of decks.

It is theoretically possible that an extreme force effect

could result from a 32.0-kip axle in one lane and a 50.0-kip
tandem in a second lane, but such sophistication is not
warranted in practical design.

2010 by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials.

All rights reserved. Duplication is a violation of applicable law.