Designing of support zones of concrete bridges to withstand action of static and dynamic load

In the paper are presented some of the acquired experiences in designing and construction of bridge structures in several countries, with a special attention to the analysis of support zones and expansion joints behavior of a number of road bridges. During destruction or damage of bridges, there is a small probability, but still there, that the human lives might be endangered (Kobe, Japan 17th January 1995); what is likely, however, is that it will be very difficult to help the injured in the region. Considering that the characteristics of removal of supports has a great influence on the behavior of the entire bridge structure, the design of support joints and connections must be paid due attention. In the recent decades, efforts are made to enhance research of all engineering structure, and thus the bridge structures and their weak points.