A Study on the Impact Coefficient of Traffic Flows on a Large Cable-Stayed Bridge in a Windy Environment

By developing a wind-vehicle-bridge coupling dynamic analysis system, the impact coefficient of traffic flows on a cable-stayed bridge and its probabilistic distribution are studied in the paper. Some important influence factors of the impact coefficient, such as the vehicle-bridge coupling effect, traveling velocity, and traffic density, are analyzed. The influence of the coupling effect between a bridge deck’s buffeting and vehicles’ vibration on the impact coefficient of traffic flows on a cable-stayed bridge is paid due attention to. The results show that vehicle-bridge coupling effect and surface roughness exert important influence on the impact effect of a cable-stayed bridge. Considering that impact coefficient of traffic flows on a bridge bears the characteristics of randomness, the paper, on the basis of a large number of samples, interprets the influence of traveling velocity and traffic density in view of its probabilistic distribution. In view of results derived from the coupling dynamic analysis, it is suggested that the impact coefficient be 25% for all spans of a long cable-stayed bridge like the Sutong Yangtze Bridge.