Schoharie Creek Bridge Model Study

Richardson, E. V.; Ruff, J. F.; Brisbane, T. E.; ,

Schoharie Creek Bridge Model Study

by E. V. Richardson, Colorado State Univ, United States,
J. F. Ruff, Colorado State Univ, United States,
T. E. Brisbane, Colorado State Univ, United States,

Document Type: Proceeding Paper

Part of: Soil Properties Evaluation from Centrifugal Models and Field Performance

Abstract:

On April 5, 1987, a major storm occurred in the Schoharie Creek watershed and the resulting flood caused the bridge to fail. The hydraulic model of the bridge was performed to simulate the flow conditions during the flood and to examine the potential scour in the vicinity of the piers and footings. The Froude criterion was used to determine the geometric scale of the model. The model was constructed by forming the topography in sand and topping the land features with a mortar cover to fix them in place. However, the creek channel is modeled in sand compacted and formed to the creek cross sections obtained from maps of the site. The paper discusses data collection, flood conditions and floods, and scour at the press.

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