Three consecutive
Extradosed bridges
An extradosed bridge employs a structure that combines the main elements of both a prestressed box girder bridge and a cable-stayed bridge. The name comes from the word '' extrados'', the exterior or upper curve of an arch, and refers to how the " ...
are part of a north beltway of
La Paz
La Paz (), officially known as Nuestra Señora de La Paz (Spanish pronunciation: ), is the seat of government of the Bolivia, Plurinational State of Bolivia. With an estimated 816,044 residents as of 2020, La Paz is the List of Bolivian cities ...
in
Bolivia
, image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg
, flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center
, flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...
.
The project was funded by CAF (Corporación Andina de Fomento) through a credit to the Municipality in 2006. In 2007 the Municipal Government of La Paz awarded the design and construction of The Triplets Bridge Project to the JV “Consorcio Asociación Accidental Progreso”. As part of this contract, PEDELTA carried out the conceptual and final detailed design.
There was a preliminary design that defined three three-span cable-stayed bridges with central spans between and two cable-stay planes, similar to another existing in the city: the
Bridge of the Americas. After a study of alternatives, where the bridge should have a cable supported deck in order to fulfill the technical specifications of the contract, it was proposed to modify the structural type to improve the visual impact on the landscape of La Paz. Therefore, it was proposed an extradosed bridge type, which reduces the height of the pylon, and a single plane of stays to allow a more transparent view
Description
The Triplets have similar structural pattern and basic idea, but the dimensions are different. All bridges are extradosed with a three-span deck and single central plane of stays.
The bridge deck is wide and carries four vehicular lanes, two lateral sidewalks wide, and a central median of where stays anchor, protected on each side by a rigid concrete barriers.
The deck is connected monolithically with the two piers, forming a portal frame, and rests on neoprene bearings at the abutments. The deck is a single-cell box wide, whose depth varies between between the piers and central areas or near abutments.
The piers, with a single shaft in their full height, are made of reinforced concrete. Some of the piers reach 40 m in height. The pylon coincides with the pier axis under the
box girder. Pylon is high and has rectangular cross-section linearly variable.
The geometric main features of the bridges are as follows:
*Kantutani Bridge: the bridge has three spans of
*Choqueyapu Bridge: the bridge has three spans of
*Orkojahuira Bridge: the bridge has three spans of
The total cost of the structure was approximately US$18.3 million.
The project was awarded with the Eugene C. Figg, Jr. Medal for Signature Bridges at the International Bridge Conference (Pittsburgh, June 2012),
at a city that also has 3 very similar bridges --
Three Sisters (Pittsburgh).
Construction
The bridge construction began in November 2007 and was completed in mid-2010 to coincide with the commemoration of the Bicentennial of Independence.
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Triplets Bridges, The
Extradosed bridges
Extradosed bridges in Bolivia
Bridges in Bolivia
Bridges completed in 2010
Concrete bridges
2010 establishments in Bolivia