Towards establishing practical multi-hazard bridge design limit states

In the U.S., the current Load and Resistance Factor Design (LRFD) Specifications for highway bridges is a reliability-based formulation that considers failure probabilities of bridge components due to the actions of typical dead load and frequent vehicular loads. Various extreme load effects, such as earthquake and vessel collision, are not considered on the same reliability-based platform. Since these extreme loads are time variables, combining them with frequent, nonextreme loads is a significant challenge. The number of design limit state equations based on these failure probabilities can be unrealistically large and unnecessary from the view point of practical applications. Based on the opinion of AASHTO State Bridge Engineers, many load combinations are insignificant in their states. This paper describes the formulation of a criterion to include only the necessary load combinations to establish the design limit states. This criterion is established by examining the total failure probabilities for all possible time-invariant and time varying load combinations and breaking them down into partial terms. Then, important load combinations can be readily determined quantitatively.