TRB Webinar: Updating Designs for Mechanically-Stabilized Earth Walls in AASHTO

Bridge design specifications were updated this year, with the largest change to designs for Mechanically-Stabilized Earth (MSE) walls in more than 20 years. TRB will host a webinar on Thursday, October 8, 2020 from 2:00-3:30 PM Eastern that will discuss these design updates. This webinar will identify how to use the Coherent Gravity Method for inextensible reinforcement, and will discuss two new design methods: limit equilibrium and stiffness method. Presenters will provide design examples and discuss their impact.

This webinar was organized by the TRB Standing Committees on Transportation Earthworks and Geosynthetics.

Some registrants will need to pay $95 to attend this webinar. Sign into MyTRB.org to view registration information.

Webinar agenda and presenters

1. Summary of changes and review of current design methods: Daniel Alzamora, U.S. Federal Highway Administration
2. New design method: Limit equilibrium: Dov Leschchinsky, University of Delaware
3. New design method: Stiffness method: Tony Allen, Washington State Department of Transportation
4. Impact on design: Daniel Alzamora, U.S. Federal Highway Administration
5. Question and answer session: Moderated by Jie Han, University of Kansas

The first 60 minutes of the webinar will be for presentations and the final 30 minutes will be reserved for audience questions.

Learning Objectives

At the end of this webinar, participants will be able to:

1. List new MSE wall design changes
2. Compare and contrast new design methods
3. Discuss how these changes impact MSE wall design

Professional Development Hour Information

Professional engineers (PEs) who register and attend the entire webinar as an individual will be awarded 1.5 Professional Development Hours (PDHs). TRB’s webinar program awards PDH credits only to the registered individual, and not to other members of a group that view the webinar together. To be eligible for the credits, individuals must remain signed in for the entire webinar, including for any question and answer session following the presentations.

Please check with your licensing board to ensure that TRB webinar PDHs are approved by your board.

TRB will report credits earned to the Registered Continuing Education Program (RCEP). Complaints about registered providers may be sent to RCEP, 1015 15th Street, NW, 8th Floor, Washington, D.C., 20005.

Pre-registration is required. Once the webinar starts, you will be unable to register. Individuals that are registered for a webinar but do not receive their confirmation emails due to their organization’s internal firewalls should contact the TRB Helpdesk for assistance in signing in.

Registration questions? Contact Reggie Gillum.