Researchers from North Carolina State University have taken girders from the now-demolished bridge, which had stood for more than 50 years. The girders are being put under two types of stress-tests at the university’s Constructed Facilities Lab. The first is to see where weaknesses would develop in the girder under continued regular use. The second puts the girders under extreme stress until it breaks
“What we're trying to really investigate is the amount of prestressing in this structure,” said Dr Giorgio Proestos, an assistant professor in the department of civil, construction and environmental engineering at North Carolina State University. "Is it enough, should there be more, should there be less, and how does that prestressing change in 60 years? Based on the results of the experiment, there might be changes in the way things are done moving forward.”
