The sequence of strong earthquakes in Canterbury in 2010 to 2011, most notably the devastating Mw 6.2 earthquake on 22 February 2011, the source of which was located within Christchurch, resulted in 185 fatalities and extensive damage to buildings and infrastructure. Liquefaction occurred on several occasions through the…
INTRODUCTION Early this year, New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) has published the NZTA Stage 2 Research Report titled “Analysis of piled bridges at sites prone to liquefaction and lateral spreading in New Zealand”. The report is available on NZTA’s website at the following address: http://www.nzta.govt.nz/resources/analysis-of-piled-bridges-at-sites-prone-to-liquefaction-and-lateral-spreading-in-new-zealand/…
Abstract One of the Canterbury Earthquake Royal Commission recommendations was that “ground improvement should be considered as part of the foundation system of a building and reliability factors included in the design procedures” and that “the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment should consider the…
The new Gisborne Police Station building was built on a soft site occupied by a historical retail building. The façade of the historical building had to be retained, and the building demolished. Based on complex geotechnical investigations and consideration of various foundation options, Opus recommended that a piled…
Abstract This paper presents a summary of an example of application of pseudo-static analysis in the design of a bridge on a site prone to liquefaction. The example is one of the outcomes from Stage 2 of a research project commissioned by the NZ Transport…
Work is currently underway to update the NZTA Bridge Manual (BM) based on recent advancements in bridge design practice in New Zealand and worldwide, and also the NZTA’s experience on the performance of bridges during the Canterbury earthquakes. In the current 2nd edition of the BM various…