The Federal Highway Administration discovered that the Milton-Madison Bridge is currently under replacement. This is a combined through and deck truss spanning the Ohio River between the towns of Milton, KY, and Madison, IN. The three approach spans on the Indiana side are simply supported deck truss spans built relatively low off the ground. Brief conversations indicate that the approach spans will be control demolished by either thermally cutting or shearing individual members one at a time. This affords two unique opportunities to monitor this bridge's approach spans. First, live load data can be captured under ambient traffic to gain an understanding of real stress ranges in a 1929-era riveted truss with built-up members. This data will be critical to the future laboratory testing that will be conducted as part of an internal redundancy pooled fund study (if initiated). Second, and more important, monitoring during controlled demolition will provide key data, such as shock factors during instantaneous member removal and dead load redistribution, both of which would be important for the calibration of structural redundancy models in the National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) Project 12-87. Demolition of the three approach span deck trusses is currently scheduled for spring 2012.

• DTFH61-10-D-01017

• Infrastructure

• FY 2002-2022 / Infrastructure / Structures