Uploaded December 2025 | Updated September 2026, 3 days ago
The Bridge Design Manual requires consideration of various extreme events such as flooding, severe scouring, and damage due to collisions. Typically, column-to-cap connections are designed as simple supports. To provide improved detailing techniques to the standard column-to-cap connection, a University of Texas-Center for Transportation Research team investigated the performance of bent cap connections with traditional and improved details. The project provided practical, easily implementable design recommendations for column-bent connections through a thorough literature review, computational analysis, improved detailing and retrofitting methods, as well as large-scale structural experiments to investigate the performance of various details. The new design guidelines allow designers to account for extreme events.
For more information on research project 0-7113, check out the TxDOT Research Library project record here:
https://library.ctr.utexas.edu/Presto/content/Detail.aspx?ctID=M2UxNzg5YmEtYzMyZS00ZjBlLWIyODctYzljMzQ3ZmVmOWFl&rID=OTI4&qrs=RmFsc2U=&q=KHJwLlN0dWR5Tm86KDAtNzExMykp&qcf=M2UxNzg5YmEtYzMyZS00ZjBlLWIyODctYzljMzQ3ZmVmOWFl&ph=VHJ1ZQ==&bckToL=VHJ1ZQ==&rrtc=VHJ1ZQ==
For access to all TxDOT research, please visit the TxDOT Research Library at https://ctr.utexas.edu/library/
The Bridge Design Manual requires consideration of various extreme events such as flooding, severe scouring, and damage due to collisions. Typically, column-to-cap connections are designed as simple supports. To provide improved detailing techniques to the standard column-to-cap connection, a University of Texas-Center for Transportation Research team investigated the performance of bent cap connections with traditional and improved details. The project provided practical, easily implementable design recommendations for column-bent connections through a thorough literature review, computational analysis, improved detailing and retrofitting methods, as well as large-scale structural experiments to investigate the performance of various details. The new design guidelines allow designers to account for extreme events.
For more information on research project 0-7113, check out the TxDOT Research Library project record here:
https://library.ctr.utexas.edu/Presto/content/Detail.aspx?ctID=M2UxNzg5YmEtYzMyZS00ZjBlLWIyODctYzljMzQ3ZmVmOWFl&rID=OTI4&qrs=RmFsc2U=&q=KHJwLlN0dWR5Tm86KDAtNzExMykp&qcf=M2UxNzg5YmEtYzMyZS00ZjBlLWIyODctYzljMzQ3ZmVmOWFl&ph=VHJ1ZQ==&bckToL=VHJ1ZQ==&rrtc=VHJ1ZQ==
For access to all TxDOT research, please visit the TxDOT Research Library at https://ctr.utexas.edu/library/
