Accidental impact by ships in the updated EN 1991-1-7

Ship collision is still one of the risk-prone expositions for bridges crossing navigable inland and mar- itime waterways. Within the preparation of the 2nd generation of the Eurocodes a 3rd (final) draft of an updated EN 1991-1-7 is edited [2]. Rules and background information for the Eurocode impact rules concerning inland and maritime waterway traffic are given. The rules and recommendations cover aspects like impact dynamics, load-indentation-functions, collision angles, collision probabili- ties and reliability criteria. For seagoing vessels new impact mechanics have been included. Infor- mation from some National Annexes and open questions are mentioned. Examples with determined ship impact forces are presented.