Gaute-Alonso, AlvaroGarcia-Sanchez, DavidUriszar-Aldaca, Iñigo CalderonLopez Castillo, Claudio2022-03Gaute-Alonso , A , Garcia-Sanchez , D , Uriszar-Aldaca , I C & Lopez Castillo , C 2022 , ' Novel Method for an Optimised Calculation of the Cross-Sectional Distribution of Live Loads on Girder Bridge Decks ' , Civil Engineering Journal , vol. 8 , no. 3 , pp. 406-420 . https://doi.org/10.28991/CEJ-2022-08-03-012476-3055researchoutputwizard: 11556/1329Publisher Copyright: © 2022 by the authors. Licensee C.E.J, Tehran, Iran.One of the main goals in the design of girder bridge deck systems is to determine the cross-sectional distribution of live loads across the different girders that make up the cross-section of the deck. Structural grillage models and current bridge design standards based on a Load Distribution Factor (LDF) provide oversized designs, as demonstrated in this paper. This research introduces a novel method that allows the cross-sectional distribution of live loads on girder bridge decks to be calculated by applying a matrix formulation that reduces the structural problem to 2 degrees of freedom for each girder: the deflection and the rotation of the deck-slab at the centre of the girder’s span. Subsequently, a parametric study is presented that analyses the structural response of 64 girder bridge decks to a total of 384 load states. In addition, the authors compare the outputs of the novel method with those obtained using traditional grillage calculation methods. Finally, the method is experimentally validated on two levels: a) a laboratory test that analyses the structural response of a small-scale girder bridge deck to the application of different load states; b) a real full-scale girder bridge load test that analyses the structural response of the bridge over the Barbate River during its static load test. Based on this analysis, the maximum divergence of the proposed method obtained from the experimental structural response is less than 10%. The use of the proposed novel analysis method undoubtedly provides significant savings in material resources and computing time, while contributing to minimizing overall costs.152880658enginfo:eu-repo/semantics/openAccessjournal article10.28991/CEJ-2022-08-03-01Cross-Sectional Load DistributionGirder Bridge DecksSmall-Scale Bridge TestFull-Scale Girder Bridge Deck Load TestOptimised Matrix MethodCross-Sectional Load DistributionGirder Bridge DecksSmall-Scale Bridge TestFull-Scale Girder Bridge Deck Load TestOptimised Matrix MethodEnvironmental EngineeringCivil and Structural EngineeringBuilding and ConstructionGeotechnical Engineering and Engineering GeologyProject IDinfo:eu-repo/grantAgreement/EC/H2020/769373/EU/Future proofing strategies FOr RESilient transport networks against Extreme Events/FORESEEinfo:eu-repo/grantAgreement/EC/H2020/769373/EU/Future proofing strategies FOr RESilient transport networks against Extreme Events/FORESEEFunding InfoThis work has received funding from the European’s Union Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 769373 (FORESEE project).This work has received funding from the European’s Union Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 769373 (FORESEE project).http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85127135372&partnerID=8YFLogxK