Ninth International Conference on Bearing Capacity of Roads, Railways and Airfields

The Ninth International Conference on the Bearing Capacity of Roads, Railways, and Airfields (BCRRA) was held in Trondheim, Norway, June 25–27, 2013. The conference was organized by the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, the Norwegian Public Roads Administration, AVINOR, and the Norwegian National Rail Administration.

The main objective of BCRRA was to facilitate discussion on policies, evaluation, efficient design, proper construction, and maintenance related to the bearing capacity challenges of transportation infrastructure. The conference provided a forum for international experts in this field to exchange experiences and views.

ICT director Imad Al-Qadi delivered the first Rasmus S. Nordal Distinguished Lecture at the BCRRA conference. Other keynote lectures were given by Professor Buddhima Indraratna, Wollongong University, Australia; and David Brill, U.S. Federal Aviation Administration. ICT researcher Erol Tutumluer presented two papers. Both Al-Qadi and Tutumluer serve on the International Advisory Board for BCRRA.

In addition to 120 paper presentations, there was a one-day pre-conference workshop on pavement design in cold regions. Four technical groups also held meetings/workshops during the BCRRA conference: TRB’s Data Analysis Working Group, SKIDSAFE (European project examining tire–pavement interaction), Deflection at Road Traffic Speed, and EuroFWD—the Seventh European Falling Weight Deflectometer User Group.