Commonwealth Avenue Bridge

The Commonwealth Avenue Bridge consists of two parallel, 310m long pre-stressed concrete box girder road bridges that span Lake Burley Griffin, linking Parkes and the City in Canberra, Australia. The bridge originally opened to traffic in 1963 and is a critical piece of infrastructure for Canberra’s metropolitan transport network.

The existing bridge is an example of early precast segmental construction where insitu joints were cast between each adjacent precast segment. This form of construction is now associated with significant risk around tendon corrosion.

The bridge has not undergone any significant upgrades for over 60 years, however in response to a growing population and increased road usage, the bridge is undergoing strengthening and widening works to continuing serving the commuters for many years to come.

In 2024, Rendel was appointed to undertake an analysis and assessment of the strengthening concept to determine whether the proposals were adequate. Upon completion of this assessment, the client further appointed Rendel to undertake the proof engineering works for the project. The scope for the proposed proof engineering on the Commonwealth Avenue Bridge Renewal is the main bridge structure, widened per the project requirements and inclusive of both superstructure and substructure elements.