A girder bridge is a bridge that uses girders as the means of supporting its deck . The two most common types of modern steel girder bridges are plate and box.
9-518: The Chouteau Bridge a four-lane girder bridge on Route 269 across the Missouri River between Jackson County, Missouri , and Clay County, Missouri . The bridge is named for François Chouteau , who was a member of the Chouteau fur trapping family and is considered the first permanent settler in what became Kansas City. Two successive bridges have carried the name Chouteau Bridge. The first bridge
18-408: Is no longer a true girder bridge. Girder bridges have existed for millennia in a variety of forms depending on resources available. The oldest types of bridges are the beam , arch and swing bridges, and they are still built today. These types of bridges have been built by human beings since ancient times, with the initial design being much simpler than what we utilize today. As technology advanced
27-462: Is typically used to refer to a steel beam. In a beam or girder bridge, the beams themselves are the primary support for the deck, and are responsible for transferring the load down to the foundation. Material type, shape, and weight all affect how much weight a beam can hold. Due to the properties of the second moment of area , the height of a girder is the most significant factor to affect its load capacity. Longer spans, more traffic, or wider spacing of
36-404: The beams will all directly result in a deeper beam. In truss and arch -style bridges, the girders are still the main support for the deck, but the load is transferred through the truss or arch to the foundation. These designs allow bridges to span larger distances without requiring the depth of the beam to increase beyond what is practical. However, with the inclusion of a truss or arch the bridge
45-452: The city of North Kansas City, Missouri . Girder bridge The term "girder" is often used interchangeably with "beam" in reference to bridge design. However, some authors define beam bridges slightly differently from girder bridges. A girder may be made of concrete or steel. Many shorter bridges, especially in rural areas where they may be exposed to water overtopping and corrosion, utilize concrete box girder. The term "girder"
54-401: The methods were improved and were based on the utilization and manipulation of rock, stone, mortar and other materials that would serve to be stronger and longer. In ancient Rome , the techniques for building bridges included the driving of wooden poles to serve as the bridge columns and then filling the column space with various construction materials. The bridges constructed by Romans were at
63-487: The time basic but very dependable and strong while serving a very important purpose in social life. As the Industrial Revolution came and went, new materials with improved physical properties were utilized; and wrought iron was replaced with steel due to steel's greater strength and larger application potential. All bridges consist of two main parts: the substructure, and the superstructure. The superstructure
72-765: Was a three-span Whipple truss bridge, built in 1887, and was the second bridge over the Missouri River in the Kansas City, Missouri, area. It was originally a railroad bridge built and used by the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad , also known as the Milwaukee Road. Upon the completion and opening of the Harry S. Truman Bridge downstream to the east, the Chouteau Bridge was converted to vehicular use in 1951. The bridge
81-469: Was very narrow, and in the latter years was often closed due to accidents, and due to low weight issues, when it was reduced to 3 tons, it was closed permanently, and removed by implosion in 2001. It was the oldest bridge on the river when it was demolished. In 2001, a new span was built a few yards upstream to the west of the old span. The north end of the bridge is near the entrance for the Harrah's Casino at
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