Segmental arch bridge at

Ramshilla: Construction aspects

M.V. Jatkar and G.P. Joshi

A 245-m long high level arch bridge across river Beas, which main arch is curved in plan. On the right bank, the viaduct
provides bypass to Kullu town in Himachal Pradesh, was comprises of a three-span continuous unit, curved in plan of
recently completed. The contract stipulated that a 100-m long 41-m length.
main arch span be constructed using stay cable system. Site
conditions in typical hilly terrain imposed many constraints The foundations of the viaduct spans are of open type,
founded at about 3 to 4 m below the bed level. The
on construction The paper discusses various constructional
substructure comprises of three circular columns with
aspects of this project, involving the use of cantilever
common capping beam at top, Figure 2. The decking comprises
segmental construction with stay cable system. of twin cell box in reinforced concrete. Since the approaches are
on curves, the deck width varies between 11 and 12 m and is
Keywords: Arch bridge, stay cable system, cantilever segmental
also provided with super elevation.
construction
The main constraint in the construction of the superstructure
The national highway NH-21 leading to the popular hillstation
was the existing roads on both sides. On the right bank, the
of Manali, passes through congested Kullu town. This often
viaduct spans are located over national highway leading to
results in frequent traffic jams. Also, only suspension
Manali with heavy traffic. Staging system of trusses/beams
pedestrian bridges connect portions of Kullu town on left and
supported over trestles was provided allowing for
right banks of river Beas. Thus, vehicular traffic in the town
uninterrupted traffic below. Similar arrangements were
had to take a detour of about 40 km just to cross from one bank
to another. A high level bridge, on road bye-passing Kullu
town, was therefore necessary for overcoming the above
problems.

General arrangement
The project consists of 104-m long viaduct on left bank
followed by 100-m long arch span and 41-m long viaduct
portion on right bank, forming an overall length of 245 m.
Detailed discussion on conceptualisation, general
arrangement, design aspects, etc of the project is covered in a
companion paper1. The general site layout plan is shown in
Figure 1.

Construction of viaduct spans

On the left bank, the total length of approach viaduct is about
104 m, comprising of seven spans. For better riding quality the
superstructure deck has been provided in two continuous
units of four and three spans. The three-span unit just near the Figure 1. Layout plan showing the bridge alignment

CONCRETE BRIDGES 1
provided on the left bank over the small village road with
moderate traffic.

Construction scheme for the arch

In-situ segmental construction using stay cables was to be
adopted for the arch in accordance with contractual
requirements. As per the original plan, the towers for stay
cables were located just behind the arch foundations. After the
bridge alignment was finalised, it was found that backstays on
left bank were entering a private property endangering the
building located on the plot and the ground anchors would
have to pass below the building.

On the right bank, the backstays were required to be anchored

on a steep hill slope. A temple was present in that area. Also,
any construction activity on the slope, dotted by huge
boulders, would have resulted in destabilising that zone and
endangering the traffic below. Figure 3. Stay cable arrangement

Since the wells were located right on the highway, placing the cast using ground-supported arrangement, Figure 4. The
towers above them would have caused a major obstacle in the general arrangement of the supporting system consisting of
traffic diversion trestles and steel joists has
arrangements planned been shown in Figure 5.
during the construction of
arch. The RC arch, with 4.75-m wide solid The location of trestles
section of varying depth, was built by supporting initial segments
In view of the above, towers had to be carefully decided
had to be located in front of cantilever construction simultaneously so as to control the stresses in
the arch and also to
the foundations, within the from both ends
arch span. The tower accommodate form traveller
configuration was modified for further segments. Sand
to girdle around the arch jacks were provided on the
section. The backstays could main trestles to facilitate
now be anchored in the well cap, Figure 3. With this smooth transfer of supporting system for the arch from ground
arrangement proper traffic diversion and satisfactory stay supported arrangement to stay cables.
cable system could be ensured.
Form traveller
Initial segments The balance portion of arch was cast in segments of 4-m each. A
The RC arch, with 4.75-m wide solid section of varying depth, specially designed form traveller was used for in-situ casting
was built by cantilever construction simultaneously from both of segments, Figure 6. A total of nine segments on either side
ends. Initial portion of about 15 m length on either side was were cast using a pair of such form travellers. As the initial

Figure 2. Typical trestle-type circular Figure 4. Casting of initial 15 m portion on supports

Columns

2 ICJ COMPILATION
 Figure 6. A view of the specially-designed form traveller

Figure 5. General arrangement of the support system backstay cables, were stressed. Figure 7 shows a view during
portion of arch was sloping steeply, timber skids with proper segmental construction of arch with stay cable system.
locking arrangements and two 20-tonne capacity hydraulic
jacks were used for moving the form traveller forward for Monitoring during arch construction
casting next segment. The form traveller was equipped with a Geometry of the arch, cable forces and tower deflections were
system of hydraulic jacks, to be used for alignment of the form monitored during each casting cycle. Cable forces and camber
traveller in vertical and horizontal planes and camber for the next segment were reviewed to maintain the profile of
adjustments. the arch and to ensure that the stresses in arch are within
permissible limits. Special formats were devised for reporting
Stay cable arrangement various parameters to design offices. After studying the arch
Stay cables were made from 12.7-mm strands of varying profile and cable forces, the necessary feedback regarding
numbers. Freyssinet's 12K13 system of anchorages and K-200 camber adjustment and adjustments of forces in the stay-
jacks were used for stressing. The back-stay and fore-stay cables stressed earlier were sent from the design office to the
cables converged at two levels of the tower. Fore-stay cables site.
were threaded from bottom of the arch through MS ducts left
in the arch segments. Back-stay cables were threaded from top The closing segment was cast using supporting arrangement
of the tower through ducts left in the well cap. suspended from adjoining portion of arch cast already. On
completion of the arch, stay cables were de-stressed as per
To limit the tower size, stressing of fore-stay cables was done predetermined sequence.
within the space provided in the anchorage zone of tower. The
back-stay cables were stressed
from the lower end anchored
in the well cap. Since the crew
had to be below the ground
level during stressing
operations, special protective
barriers had to be provided to
guard against landslides from
adjoining hills. Kentledge had
to be provided above the
anchorage zone of back-stay
cables to limit tensile stresses
in the steining due to vertical
component of force in the
cables.

Segmental
construction with
stay cable system
After casting each segment, a
pair of forestay cables and
corresponding pair of Figure 7. Segmental construction of arch in progress from both ends

CONCRETE BRIDGES 3
 Due to the possibility of
unseasonal floods with heavy
current, the alternative of
providing staging system resting
on riverbed for casting the main
arch was ruled out. Instead, stay
cable system for supporting cast-
in-situ segments of arch was
adopted.

The system of using stay cables for

supporting arch segments during
construction requires rigorous
analysis of construction-stage
loads. Accurate assessment of
loads, cable forces, deflections,
camber, etc are required to control
exact profile and stresses in arch
during construction. During
Figure 8. Construction of deck in progress on the constructed arch
construction, the permanent and
enabling structures cease to have
separate identities, instead they
integrate to resist applied forces till
the permanent structure becomes
self-supporting. The construction
sequence plays an important role
and various construction stages
need to be identified carefully.
Adjustments in cable forces are
needed depending upon the actual
deflections and actual forces in
stay cables measured at site during
various construction stages. This
calls for constant interaction
between site and design office.
Meticulous designing and
planning, active support from the
clients and their consultant lead to
Figure 9. Bridge nearing completion successful completion of this
technically demanding project.
The aesthetically appealing bridge
Construction of deck slab over arch blends well with the scenic
After the construction of spandrel columns, the deck slab over
backdrop of surrounding hills.
the arch was cast using falsework spanning between the
columns. However, about 30-m long central portion of Mr M.V. Jatkar, a post-graduate in structures,
decking, which merged with the arch and cantilevered out is currently the vice-president (construction
from the arch rib, had to be cast using falsework suspended systems) in Gammon India Ltd. For the past 25
from travelling gantry resting on top of the arch itself, Figures 8 years he has been involved in design of industrial
and 9. structures, prestressed concrete bridges,
software development for structural analysis
and design, construction planning and design of
Conclusion enabling structures. He is a member of several professional
Site conditions in hilly terrain impose many constraints on bodies.
construction activities. Inadequate space, congested locality,
steep hills with unstable slopes, land slides, etc are common Mr G.P. Joshi obtained his degree in civil
obstacles under such conditions. Rivers susceptible to non- engineering from University of Pune. For the
past 23 years he is involved in design of PSC
seasonal or flash floods make construction of superstructure bridges, software development for civil
more difficult. In the present project, reinforced concrete deck engineering applications, planning and design of
slab with open spandrel arch was considered to be the most enabling structures. He is a member of several
appropriate alternative for crossing the river thus avoiding professional bodies.
intermediate foundation in main river channel. (Source: ICJ May 2005, Vol. 79, No. 5, pp. 43-46)

4 ICJ COMPILATION