Response of the Confederation Bridge to wind load and its influence on estimation of ice load (New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island)

The Confederation Bridge, 12.9 km long across the Northumberland Strait, connects Prince Edward Island to New Brunswick in Atlantic Canada. The harsh weather conditions at the bridge site often subject the bridge structures to severe loading, particularly in the winter season of high ice forces, which represent the governing effect of the lateral load design for the bridge piers. To obtain information of ice forces acting on the bridge pier, an ice load monitoring and research programme at Piers 23 and 24 near the navigation span of the bridge has been implemented and has been collecting data since 1999. The objective of this project is to study the ice load and ice-structure interaction characteristics of the circular bridge piers of the Confederation Bridge. The research data and results help to verify the design assumptions of the bridge, lead to more comprehensive understanding of the ice load characteristics of large circular bridge pier member under severe loading environment. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)...