COVER OF THE RAILROAD TRENCH OFHENDAYE

Abstract

An important problem put by the train in its passage by thecities of Europe generally and France in particular is the effectbarrier which builds up, preventing the cities from developingbeyond. Even if this barrier is crossed, it is certain that thepassage is restricted to concrete places and always acts aspsychological barrier for the local residents.This article presents in a brief way the problems of conceptionand calculation of the structure of the cover of the railroadtrench of Hendaye. This structure consists of a 20-40 metersspan slab of pre-stressed concrete. Its construction waspossible thanks to the agreement of the SNCF (FrenchRailways) and some private investors, and is allowing theconstruction on top of 6 residential buildings and a holidayresidence, with demolition of the ancient "Pont-Vieux" andbuilding of a new "Pont-Vieux", completely integrated into thereal-estate development.Special one attention is given to the change of transverse cross-section of the slab during construction stages which originatesa redistribution of stresses and to the long-term equilibrium ofhorizontal forces.