Field Tests to Determine Static and Dynamic Response to Traffic Loads of Fiber-Reinforced Polyester No-Name Creek Bridge

No-Name Creek Bridge, built in Russell, Kansas, in 1996, is the first all-composite highway bridge in the United States. Its structural panels are built of glass fiber-reinforced polyester sandwich panels with honeycomb cores. The bridge surface is made of polymer concrete. Two static field tests were conducted, one shortly after its completion in 1996, the other in 1997. In September 2004, after 8 years of service, field tests were repeated to examine the environmental effect on the composite materials. Test results were compared with previous results. No significant change of the bridge rigidity was found after 8 years. In addition, dynamic response to moving traffic loads was investigated. An AASHTO Type 3 truck, with a gross weight of 70,340 lb, was used to apply the traffic load to the bridge. Four types of tests were conducted: static loading, crawl speed loading, moving traffic loading, and impact traffic loading. Dynamic factors and natural frequency were measured.