50-Year-Old Prestressed Segmental Concrete Bridges

The first prestressed segmental concrete bridge in the United States opened to traffic was a small bridge in Madison County, Tennessee. The bridge was constructed using prestressed concrete segments and was opened to traffic in October 1950. Prestressed concrete beams were placed side by side to form the superstructure of the bridge. The construction of this bridge and several other similar prestressed concrete bridges are described herein. The existing condition of eleven prestressed concrete bridges remaining in Tennessee is given. Only minor spalling, leaching, and horizontal cracking are present in the superstructure after fifty years of service. Many of the design features introduced in this design can be found in today’s modern precast segmental concrete bridges.