Bridge deck
A bridge deck is the roadway or walkway surface carried by a bridge’s supporting structure. It distributes traffic loads to the structure below.
Deck slab: A flat structural plate that carries loads across supports in a bridge or building. Concrete or steel deck slabs form the traffic-bearing layer of many bridges.
Live load: A variable load imposed on a structure by use, such as vehicles, pedestrians, or movable equipment. Traffic loads are applied directly to the deck and change as users move across it.
Orthotropic deck: A steel bridge deck stiffened differently in perpendicular directions, with an integrated roadway plate and ribs. This lightweight deck type is used where reducing bridge dead load matters.
Bridge deck deterioration: The progressive loss of a bridge deck’s material condition, strength, or serviceability. Water, salts, traffic, and environmental exposure degrade the deck over time.
Stringer (structure): A longitudinal beam that supports a floor or deck between larger structural members. Stringers carry deck loads toward a bridge’s main girders.
Load path: The route by which forces travel through a structure to its supports and foundation. Deck forces pass through slabs, beams, bearings, and supports along a defined path.
Concrete bridge deck: A bridge deck whose principal traffic-bearing slab is made of concrete, often reinforced or prestressed. Concrete slabs are a common deck form for highway bridges.
Chloride-induced corrosion: Corrosion of reinforcing steel initiated when chloride ions penetrate concrete and disrupt its protective environment. Deicing salts can carry chlorides through a deck and corrode its reinforcement.
Bridge girder: A major horizontal structural member that supports a bridge deck and transfers its loads to supports. Girders receive forces from the deck and span between piers or abutments.
Flexure: Structural deformation and internal resistance caused by bending under load. A deck bends between supports as traffic and other loads act on it.