Transition slab between the abutment and the deck of a bridge with expansion and contraction joints having a long service life, and methods for absorbing the expansion and contraction movements of the deck of a bridge

A transition slab between an abutment and a deck of a bridge with expansion and contraction joints having a long service life, said transition slab resting on the ground of an extrados of the abutment which is heavily compacted to withstand vertical actions, and linking up with a road, said transition slab integrating:

• reinforced concrete with or without retraction, with rebars for transverse force distribution;
• any conventional structural connection for connecting one side of the transition slab with a compression slab of the deck;
• any conventional connection for connecting an anchoring with the opposite side of said transition slab;
• wherein said transition slab comprises:
• forced crack planes that are parallel to and spaced from one another, the crack openings of which are perpendicular to the direction of the road;
• wood, polymer or the like in thin forms of about 0.5-2 cm, such that they force the suitable mapping of the crack planes perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the road which can absorb the contraction movements of the deck through the summation of the crack openings in the forced cracks, and
• rebars suitably sewing the forced cracks between the deck and the anchoring block.