Chilean Bridges: Concepcion POC with Spiral Ramps

Just a couple more pedestrian overcrossings (POC) and then we'll move on to something else.

I like the spiral ramps on this POC, although I'm surprised there is sufficient headroom for an adult. I noticed that they also provide a regular sloping ramp on one side of the road. Maybe they didn't have room to provide a sloping ramp on the other side? I also wonder if the columns for the spiral ramps are hollow and if they have a roof?

I remember there was a POC with spiral ramps near the beach in Santa Monica that was closed because of concerns how it would perform during an earthquake. However, this POC seems to be a more modest structure and the central column probably provides more stability.

Chilean Bridges: Concepcion POC w/ Spiral Ramps by Mark Yashinsky is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 United States License.

Chilean Bridges: Pasarela Plaza Del Trebol

Another footbridge, this one carrying people from the mall over Talcahuana Way to a bus stop. I guess this structure can best be described as utilitarian. It certainly gets a lot of use.

We went to the food court in the mall for lunch. It had a huge dining area, and it was packed on a Wednesday afternoon. While we were eating, a big aftershock started shaking the mall. All the talking stopped and you could hear a pin drop. It looked like the crowd was ready to panic, but thankfully the shaking gradually subsided.

This bridge is a kind of tubular truss structure supported on four-legged towers, and enclosed in translucent plastic. This type of structure has become very popular lately and it has an interesting appearance although I don't think of it as structurally significant.

Pedestrian Overcrossings are vary common throughout Chile and are a good away of keeping people and automobiles away from each other.

Chilean Bridges: Pasarela Plaza Del Trebol by Mark Yashinsky is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 United States License.

Chilean Bridges: Pasarela Sobre Autopista Costanera

This fancy pedestrian overcrossing is also near the Rio Biobio, but on the east side near Puente Llacolen. One side of the bridge can be accessed by a kind of stairwell while the other side is connected to a long ramp.

Although this POC is a little overdecorated, I think it blends in well with the brightly-colored apartments and the pretty park.

Chilean Bridges: Pasarela Sobre Autopista Costanera by Mark Yashinsky is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 United States License.

Chilean Bridges: Pasarela Peatonal sobre la Autopista Alessandri

Another pedestrian overcrossing in Concepcion, Chile. It is just northwest of Puente Juan Pablo II over the Rio Bio Bio.

This is a simple Warren through truss with a arched top chord. It looks like a pony truss, which means that it doesn't have a portal frame or any cross bracing on the top.

Chilean Bridges: Pasarela Peatonal sobre la Autopista Alessandri by Mark Yashinsky is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 United States License.

Chilean Bridges: Concepcion Arch POC

Engineers get a chance to be a little more creative when designing pedestrian bridges, especially in Chile. We've discussed how our aesthetic experience for bridges is related to seeing how the structure performs. This is one of the clearest illustrations for a three-pinned arch in recent memory. I like how clearly articulated the pins are and how the deck sits on the two arch ribs.

There's a series of these interesting pedestrian structures on the highways near Plaza Del Trebol, the big shopping mall on the north side of town.

Chilean Bridges: Concepcion Arch POC by Mark Yashinsky is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 United States License.

Chilean Bridges: Puente Ferroviario del Río Bio Bio

Another railroad bridge, this one crossing the 2.2 km wide Rio Bio Bio in Concepcion, Chile. The river flows through the second largest city in Chile, and yet there is almost no development along it's banks. The Rio Bio Bio is incredibly wide and it must be a tidal estuary flowing into the sea near Conception.

This railroad structure is composed of parallel top and bottom chords separated by diagonal and vertical members in a Warren truss arrangement. Note the overhead wire and catenary that is used to power the train.

This bridge as well as all the other bridges across the Rio Bio Bio in Concepcion were damaged by last month's earthquake due to strong shaking and lateral spreading of the river banks.

Chilean Bridges: Puente Ferroviario del Río Bio Bio by Mark Yashinsky is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 United States License.