9 ms·
The most surprising the thing from the article is the posted weight limit of 26 tons. I'm no structural engineer but that seems very low to me for the size and
by Yoofie 5y ago
The most surprising the thing from the article is the posted weight limit of 26 tons. I'm no structural engineer but that seems very low to me for the size and length of the bridge? From the looks of the picture, shouldn't that bridge support like 5x to 10x that weight? A quick google shows that the average car weight is 4156 lbs [1]. So the bridge can only support roughly 5.5 cars before its over limit? And that is not considering common heavy vehicles likes semis, buses, etc.
And with auto industry going to toward EVs, vehicles are only going to get heavier, not lighter. The upcoming Hummer EV will be 9000 lbs [2] for example. This bridge seems awfully under-spec'd for its purpose. Someone please tell me that I am interpreting this number wrong.
[1]: https://www.bankrate.com/insurance/car/average-car-weight/ https://www.bankrate.com/insurance/car/average-car-weight/
[2]: https://www.google.com/search?q=hummer+ev+weight https://www.google.com/search?q=hummer+ev+weight
- pwr-electronics 5y agoBtw, 1 ton = 2000 lbs, not 1000.
- titzer 5y agoI think the posted limit is supposed to be per vehicle.
- petee 5y agoLikely derated with time; a lot of bridges are given lower capacity as they wear out
- hackcasual 5y agoWeight limits are per-vehicle.
- pwr-electronics 5y agoImagine having to size up the other vehicles before crossing a bridge instead of just worrying about yourself.
- letitbeirie 5y agoLike playing the "guess your weight" game with everyone else piling into an elevator
- deleted 5y ago[deleted]
- femiagbabiaka 5y agoAs a side note, a 9000 lbs consumer grade vehicle is insanity.
- kylehotchkiss 5y agoAccident safety ratings are going to have to be reinvented if heavy SUV EVs continue down this path. A Honda civic weighs 1/3 of this!
- dieselgate 5y agoI don’t inherently disagree agree with you but 9k lbs isn’t too far out of the range of normal passenger vehicle weight. But I would agree that many vehicles in the US and North America are probably oversized.
- geocrasher 5y agoYes, it is. I drive a 1988 Suburban 4x4 with a solid front axle, leaf springs, and all the old school heavier construction. With my fat lard butt in it, it's just under 6000lbs.
- fy20 5y agoIn the EU you need a goods vehicle (truck) license to drive a vehicle + contents weighing more than 3,500kg (7,700lbs). Even most RVs here come well under that limit so you don't need a special license.
- piva00 5y ago9000 lbs vehicles require a special licence to drive in the EU.
- Johnny555 5y agoHow do you define "Normal passenger vehicle"? An Audi A6 weights 4500 lbs, Tesla Model S LongRange is 4800 lbs, Honda CRV is 3500 lbs, Honda Odyssey Minivan is 4600 lbs, Ford Explorer is 5000 lbs, even a Ford Expedition is "only" 5600 lbs. What passenger vehicles are in the range of 9000 lbs?
- ars 5y agoAs other people mentioned, it's per vehicle, so they multiply the maximum number of vehicles the bridge can hold at once.