Abstract. Bridges are critical-infrastructure components of road and rail transport networks. A large number of these critical assets cross or are adjacent to waterways and floodplains and are therefore exposed to flood actions such as scour, hydrodynamic loading, and inundation, all of which are exacerbated by debris accumulations. These stressors are widely recognized as responsible for the vast majority of bridge failures around the world, and they are expected to be exacerbated due to climate change. While efforts have been made to increase the robustness of bridges to the flood hazard, many scientific and technical gaps remain. These gaps were explored during an expert workshop that took place in April 2021 with the participation of academics, consultants, and decision makers operating mainly in the United Kingdom and specializing in the fields of bridge risk assessment and management and flood resilience. The objective of the workshop was to identify and prioritize the most urgent and significant impediments to bridge flood resilience. In particular, the following issues, established at different levels and scales of bridge flood resilience, were identified and analysed in depth: (i) characterization of the effects of floods on different bridge typologies, (ii) uncertainties in formulae for scour depth assessment, (iii) evaluation of consequences of damage, (iv) recovery process after flood damage, (v) decision-making under uncertainty for flood-critical bridges, and (vi) use of event forecasting and monitoring data for increasing the reliability of bridge flood risk estimations. These issues are discussed in this paper to inform other researchers and stakeholders worldwide, guide the directions of future research in the field, and influence policies for risk mitigation and rapid response to flood warnings, ultimately increasing bridge resilience.
Aims: The impacts of catastrophic flooding have steadily increased over the last few decades. This work investigated the effectiveness of flood modeling, with low dimensionality models along with a wealth of soft (qualitative) and hard (quantitative) data. In the presence of very low resolution or qualitative data this approach has the potential of assessing a plethora of different scenarios with little computational cost, without compromise in prediction accuracy. Study Design: A flood risk modeling approach was implemented for the urbanized and flood prone region of Whitesands, at the Scottish town of Dumfries. This involved collection of a wide range of data: a) topographical maps and data from field visits were used to complement existing crosssectional data, for building the river's geometry, b) appropriate hydrological data were employed to run the simulations, while historical information about the extent, depth and impacts of flooding were utilized for calibrating the hydraulic model, and c) a wealth of photographic data obtained during the most recent December 2013 flood, were used for the model's validation.
This study focuses on the utilisation of lab-based activities to enhance the learning experience of engineering students studying water engineering and geosciences courses. Specifically, the use of “floodopoly” as a physical model demonstration in improving the students’ understanding of the relevant processes of flooding, infrastructure scour and sediment transport, and improve retention and performance in simulation of these processes in engineering design courses, is discussed. The effectiveness of lab-based demonstration is explored using a survey assessing the weight of various factors that might influence students’ performance and satisfaction. It reveals how lab-centred learning, overall course success is linked with student motivation and the students’ perception of an inclusive teaching environment. It also explores the effectiveness of the implementation of student-centred and inquiry-guided teaching and various methods of assessment. The analysis and discussion are informed by students’ responses to a specifically designed questionnaire, showing an improvement of the satisfaction rates compared to traditional class-based learning modules. For example, more students (85%) reported that they perceived the lab-based environment as an excellent contribution to their learning experience, while less students (about 57%) were as satisfied for a traditional class-based course delivery. Such findings can be used to improve students’ learning experience by introducing physical model demonstrations, similar to those offered herein.
Scour can be responsible for compromising the stability of bridges and, if not identified early and adequately addressed, can lead to the catastrophic failure of a structure. BD 97/12 of the Design Manual for Roads and Bridges is used for the assessment of bridges and other structures over or adjacent to a watercourse and allows application of risk ratings based on variable circumstances and therefore a logical approach to investment in scour-related issues. Structures considered to be particularly at risk of scour are being subject to reactive safety inspections following events likely to increase water levels. This study describes efforts to use engineering measures for increased protection against scouring at A68 240 Galadean Bridge, UK. In this case, sediment transport has formed an island upstream of the structure, introducing a bend into what used to be a straight section of Leader Water, resulting in the river being redirected towards the western riverbank. As a result, the northwestern embankment of the A68, the outer side of the bend, has been significantly eroded. This case study emphasises the importance of changes in the morphology of a watercourse to be identified at early stages.
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