Diaphragm abutment Californian bridges subjected to UCERF2 rupture scenarios: Complete damage state evolution with improvements to seismic codes

The seismic design of bridges in California has evolved largely around 1970 to 1990 in terms of transverse reinforcement spacing and ductile detailing. This study focuses on diaphragm abutment bridges with design criteria ranging from pre-70's design to post 90's design in California and subjecting them to future possible earthquakes on California faults, according to the Uniform California Earthquake Rupture Forecast (UCERF). Using the synthetic ground motion from Southern California (Elysian Park, San Jacinto, and Southern San Andreas) and Northern California (Hayward, and Northern San Andreas) at DesignSafe data repository as base excitation, fragility analysis of diaphragm abutment bridges within Los Angeles, San Bernardino, and San Francisco regions is presented. The scenario with the highest threat to bridges in each of the 3 regions is highlighted. Furthermore, the result reveals the importance of the orientation of bridges on the median fragility for the complete damage limit state and compares them with HAZard US (HAZUS) fragility parameters. © 2022 Elsevier Lt