One of the assignments of the Structures and Materials course (CIV102) at the University of Toronto was designing a pedestrian truss bridge which could be implemented in real world. The purpose of this assignment, which was done in groups of 3, was to consider all factors crucial to designing truss bridge and applying the learnt concepts in the course. The assignment sheet which includes the requirements of the project has been attached below.


Our first step in designing this bridge was evaluating different possibilities. Since aesthetics was an important factor, we looked into various types of truss bridges, such as K truss, Warren truss, arch truss, and bowstring arch truss. Next, by considering the budget and the required strength of the bridge, we decided to design a customized version of a bowstring arch truss.

​
Some of the factors that we looked at and considered in our calculations were self-weight of the bridge, maximum weight of live load (pedestrians), type of steel sections used for each part of the bridge, effects of wind, and frequency of the live load marching. Calculations for the design of the bridge have been attached below.