Neat bridge, BUT... The suspension cables were only used for the construction process, to help transport parts and beams into place. They were removed after the bridge was finished, and in use.
During construction, the laminated arches, were left un-bolted until after construction was finished, and then the bridge was "placed under load" by running loaded cars onto it, until the arches were in the correct shape, and then the thru bolts on the laminations, were tightened. BTW the bridge was built of " Green" timbers.
During its operating years, the bridge was "Wet down" before every crossing, to prevent a fire. This did prevent any fire, but the constant moisture, was the ultimate demise of the bridge, as it set in the rotting of the timbers, ultimately causing loss of structural integrity. It had some structural members added in it's latter years, that helped prolong its life.
The wooden cribbing for the pillars was bassicly just the forms, left in place, after the filling of the inside with "gravel" and concrete.
Here is a link to more info on this bridge by "NEW ZEALAND TIMBER DESIGN JOURNAL VOL 20 ยท ISSUE 3"
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www.timberdesign.org.nz]
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/23/2017 10:02AM by dave2-8-0.