Drainage Crossings: Culverts, Fords, Bridges
Observing Deflection
on a Timber Bridge
Drainage Crossings: Culverts, Fords, Bridges
“Drainage Crossings Structures” (Culverts, Fords, and Bridges) each have specific design requirements, siting requirements, and maintenance needs. Good references exist for each type of structure. Bridges are very expensive, and any road has numerous culverts, thus they represent a lot of expense. Also they are located where a road crosses a waterway, so structure failures can cause a great deal of environmental damage, as well as the cost for repairs. Fords and low-water crossings offer specific advantages (and limitations) over other types of structures, appropriate for low-volume roads.
[downloads_box title=”Library Documents:”]
Comprehensive FHWA manual on the hydraulic design of highway culverts.
Scour Evaluation at Bridges, HEC 18
A comprehensive reference by FHWA on scour evaluation at bridges, around structures, and in channels.
Low-Water Crossings: Geomorphic, Biological and Engineering DesignConsiderations
A comprehensive treatment of the impacts and design requirements for fords and low-water crossings, along with numerous case studies of a variety of designs.
Designing Watercourse Crossings for Passage of 100-Year Flood Flows, Wood, and Sediment
A useful guide to designing culverts to resist failure during major storm events, either from lack of capacity or from plugging by woody debris and sediment. Published by the California Department of Forestry.
[/downloads_box]
Please join in this conversation. Use the “Comments” section below…