A new, rocking, pre-tensioned concrete bridge bent system has been developed that reduces on-site construction time by precasting the beams and columns, minimizes post-earthquake residual displacements by the use of locally unbonded, pre-tensioned strands in the columns, and reduces earthquake damage by means of rocking connections at the ends of the columns. Cyclic tests of the critical connections have demonstrated that the system can deform to drift ratios of around 6% with minimal damage and negligible residual displacements. Shaking table tests of a 25% scale, two-span bridge at the University of Nevada, Reno will be used to evaluate the dynamic performance of the system.
