Checking on Structural Design

The Minister of Housing and Local Government formally laid before Parliament on 5 February the Building (Fifth Amendment) Regulations 1970. These regulations, if approved, will come into operation on 1 April 1970 but will not apply to work that was: (a) completed before the date of the coming into operation of these regulations; or (b) completed after that date in accordance with plans deposited with the local authority before that date, with or without any departure or deviation from those plans.

Western Avenue Extension is a 4 km (2 1/2 mile) elevated road to near Motorway standards, currently under construction in West London. D.J. Lee

The general theory of beams curved in plan with torsional restraint at the supports is explained, with particular reference to prestress loading. It is proved that the torsional moments due to prestress loading are solely dependent on the support bending moments, and the conditions of concordancy are formulated for a circularly curved beam. It is suggested that for most practical cases the support bending moments in circularly curved beams can be calculated to sufficient accuracy assuming the beam is straight, and the order of accuracy is given. A similar approximation can also be made when analysing the effects of loads other than prestress. R.J. Garrett and R.A. Cochrane