Monday, April 4, 2011
Reply from City of Kamloops
The City fo Kamloops replied to me via email today with some pretty relevant info about the existing bridge in Kamloops CBD and the proposals for the new bridge at Summit Drive including the Bicycle plan and council meeting minutes. I think there'll be lots of useful info for my research paper. I want to sort through it before posting anything on here.
Sunday, April 3, 2011
Abstract for Research
Abstract:
Thesis: How can a pedestrian bridge over Summit Drive be designed for maximum use and promote community values?
The purpose of the research report is to prepare an appropriate concept and preliminary design for a pedestrian bridge at Summit Drive and McGill Road in Kamloops, BC, Canada. The report will look at the need for a bridge, the site, some commonly used materials for bridge construction as well as a design proposal for the bridge. The design will attempt to incorporate accessibility guidelines, Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED) principles, sustainable urban design philosophies and bridge standards for BC as outlined by the Government of BC (BC Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure, 2007).
The need for this bridge is related to the growing population of Kamloops (City of Kamloops, n.d.), the proximity to the Tournament Capital Centre (TCC), the large number of students and staff at Thompson Rivers University (TRU ) and the traffic congestion and safety concerns at the intersection of Summit Drive and McGill Road. The need for a solution to the congestion has also been identified by the City of Kamloops and their request for a proposal of a bridge at the site.
Kamloops grew by 3.7% from 2006 to 2009 (City of Kamloops, n.d.). As a growing city, the investment in infrastructure is important to maintain the high quality of life enjoyed by the residents. As the ‘Tournament Capital of Canada’, Kamloops hosts a variety of sporting and recreational events. The TCC is used heavily both by residents of Kamloops and by visitors to the region who participate in these sporting and recreational activities. When these visitors use the TCC, this intersection sees increased volume of vehicles and pedestrians.
The growing use of the pedestrian crosswalk is also due in large part to the growing population of TRU which now has over 25,000 students (Venture Kamloops, 2011). The nearby abundance of rental accommodation is used by the growing student body who then commute in vehicles and by foot to TRU. Summit Drive is an arterial road and is used by other commuters as a means to access the central business district of Kamloops and the North Shore which conflicts directly with the pedestrian crossing at the intersection with McGill Road. The apparent result of this conflict is the long wait times at the traffic light by vehicles turning north from McGill Road on to Summit Drive. This report will further investigate the volume of pedestrian and vehicle traffic at this intersection. Currently, pedestrians have to take a 300m route from Dalgleish Drive to the intersection at Summit Drive and McGill Road in order to safely cross Summit Drive and get to TRU. This long detour often results in illegal and unsafe crossings of Summit Drive by pedestrians.
The proposed site is in a prominent location with views of the North Shore and the Thompson River. It’s location is between the higher density housing and short term accommodation that falls east of Summit Drive and the TCC, TRU, Wal-Mart, Home Depot and other smaller retail shops situated to the west of summit drive. Summit Drive is approximately 30m wide at the site. The intersection of Summit Drive and McGill Road is at roughly 510m above sea level and slopes down to the north at 7.5% for 400m. There is a gully bottom of 480m elevation 50m to the west of Summit Drive and University Drive on the TRU campus is at roughly 505m above sea level. Finally, Dalgliesh Drive is located directly west of Summit Drive at 505m above sea level.
Bridges are commonly constructed from combinations of wood, concrete and steel (Gardner, 2008). Bridges have historically been constructed using timber for structural purposes. An example of which is the Burkeville Covered Bridge built in 1871 in Massachusetts with a span of 106 ft. (32m) (Lee & Brenner, 2008). While the required span over Summit Drive will likely be greater than 32m, there are other timber bridges with much greater single spans. Wood is less durable than concrete and steel however Bijen (2003) outlines that with proper maintenance the service life of timber has been known to exceed 500 years. The Kamloops local area has an abundance of timber due to the Mountain Pine Beetle which has devastated BC’s pine forests making timber a viable and sustainable option for the bridge.
Concrete became a universal material in bridge construction in the 20th century although it is very limited in terms of its structural abilities as it is very weak in tension without the use of reinforcing (Hempstead, 2005). Steel is the dominant material used to reinforce concrete in structures as it is strong in tension which compliments the compression strength of concrete.
Structural steel is very ductile and therefore a widely used material in engineering (Bruneau, Uang &Whittaker, 1998). In bridge construction, steel is used for cables, structural members, as reinforcing in concrete and many other engineering applications. It’s availability and relatively low cost make it a preferred material.
Another potential material is bamboo which has been regularly used as a structural material in parts of Asia and South America. It is at the same time sustainable, light weight and remarkably strong (Laroque, 2007). The durability and lifespan of bamboo as a structural material for a bridge will require further research.
The process for designing a bridge would normally follow several key steps. First, the site for the structure and the requirements of the structure should be investigated. The next step is for the designer to create conceptual and preliminary designs. A final design is then prepared along with the necessary documentation and finally the designs are put to tender and construction begins (Gorenc, Tinyou & Syam, 2005).
A design for a pedestrian bridge in the City of Edmonton was selected because it offered the least environmental disruption and because it helped the City of Edmonton achieve a goal of promoting sustainable transportation and healthy communities by encouraging physical activity and non-motorized transportation (City of Edmonton, 2011).
The intent of the research is to prepare an informed and appropriate conceptual and preliminary design which could potentially be proposed to the City of Kamloops. The final result design will take into account the values of the community, the potential users of the bridge, accessibility of the bridge for users with mobility disabilities, urban design strategies and CPTED principles. This design will be presented in the form of design sketches, technical diagrams and a written description of the project.
References:
Bijen, J. (2003). Durability of Engineering Structures- Design, Repair and Maintenance.
Cambridge: Woodhead Publishing Limited.
Bruneau, M., Uang, C & Whittaker, A. (1998). Ductile Design of Steel Structures. New
York: McGraw Hill Companies, Inc.
City of Edmonton, (2011). Fort Edmonton Footbridge Project. Retrieved on April 2, 2011
from http://www.edmonton.ca/attractions_recreation/parks_rivervalley/fort-
edmonton-footbridge-project.aspx
City of Kamloops. (n.d.). Residents- Demographics. Retrieved from
http://www.city.kamloops.bc.ca/demographics/index.shtml on April 2, 2011
Gardner, D. (2008). Wood, Concrete, Stone and Steel: Minnesota’s Historic Bridges.
Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.Gorenc, B., Tinyou, R., & Syam, A.
(2005). Steel Designer’s Handbook. Sydney: UNSW Press Ltd
Hempstead, C. (Ed.). (2005). Encyclopedia of 20th Century Technology: Volume 1, A-L. New
York: Routledge.
Kranakis, E. (1997). Constructing a Bridge: An Exploration of Engineering Culture, Design,
and Research in Nineteenth-century France and America. Cambridge: MIT Press.
Laroque, P., (2007). Design of a Low Cost Bamboo Footbridge. Massachusetts: MIT
Lee, S. & Brenner, B. (2008). Rehabilitation of Two Historic Timber Covered Bridges in
Massachusetts. In Adeli, H. (Ed.) Historic Bridges: Evaluation, Preservation and
Management. Boca Raton: CRC Press.
Mahmoud, K., (2007). Innovations in Bridge Engineering Technology. London: Taylor and
Francis Group
Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure. (2007). Bridge Standards and Procedures
Manual Volume 1- Supplement to CHBDC S6-06 Section 1. Retrieved from:
http://www.th.gov.bc.ca/publications/eng_publications/bridge/standards/BSM-
Volume-1_2007/BSM_Vol_1_Sec_01_Aug_2007.pdf on March 26, 2011
Phiri. M., (1999). Information Technology in Construction Design. London: Thomas Telford
Publishing
Venture Kamloops. (2011). Kamloops Advantages. Retrieved from:
http://www.venturekamloops.com/kamloops-advantages.htm on April 2, 2011
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Map of Sections
City of Kamloops, (n.d.) Online Services Property Information Search. Retrieved on March 30 2011 from http://webserver.kamloops.ca/tempestlive/webInquiry/frames.cfm
Section lines drawn by Jeremy Cox on March 30 2011
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