A Case Study of the Retrofitting of the Great Fish River Bridge

Abstract

In developing countries and economies such as South Africa, retrofitting is a vital tool to maximise and extend the service life of existing infrastructure. The transportation sector plays a pivotal role in stimulating economic growth, and retrofitting existing bridges to meet the growing capacity needs of South Africa's roads supports continued economic growth and development. This paper outlines the technical and practical challenges encountered and the solutions developed by the design team to retrofit the existing 215 m long, 9-span, Great Fish River Bridge in the Eastern Cape of South Africa. These challenges included jacking up the existing bridge under traffic loading to replace 108 existing bearings and erecting 32.5t precast beams at heights of 10.5m above a major river whilst accommodating high volumes of traffic on a busy National road.