Issue 78

S. Majer et alii, Fracture and Structural Integrity, 78 (2026) 504-518; DOI: 10.3221/IGF-ESIS.78.29

Figure 4: Geological setting of the Szczecin– Ś winouj ś cie port complex. Developed by the authors using data from the Detailed Geological Map of Poland, Polish Geological Institute – National Research Institute (PGI-NRI) [12]. The Port of Ś winouj ś cie is located within the Ś wina Gate, a unique geomorphological unit situated between the islands of Wolin and Uznam [11]. This area forms an integral part of the Odra estuary and is characterized by extensive marine and lagoon deposits, shallow groundwater conditions, and complex hydrogeological interactions associated with the Ś wina Strait, which connects the Szczecin Lagoon with the open Baltic Sea. The geological framework of the region is strongly governed by post-glacial processes and continuous interactions between marine and fluvial sedimentation [12]. In Szczecin, many of the areas designated for port expansion and offshore wind-related investments are located on reclaimed land and former riverine or industrial sites, including the Gryfia shipyard area and Ostrów Grabowski. These locations exhibit highly variable subsoil conditions resulting from both natural sedimentation processes and long-term anthropogenic activities. Consequently, considerable variations in soil engineering properties can occur even within relatively small areas, creating significant challenges for the design of pavement structures subjected to extreme operational loads. From the pavement engineering perspective, the most severe geotechnical challenges include low-bearing-capacity soils, the presence of highly compressible organic layers, elevated groundwater levels, and the risk of excessive total and differential settlements. These factors are particularly critical in logistics yards, heavy cargo storage areas, and offshore wind terminals, where operational loads significantly exceed those typically encountered on conventional road pavements. Therefore, the design process requires not only structural verification of the pavement layers but also a comprehensive assessment of long-term subsoil performance and, where necessary, the implementation of dedicated ground improvement measures. Unlike highway pavements, where loading conditions are generally represented by standardized, repetitive axle configurations, port pavements are frequently exposed to highly concentrated wheel loads, crawler tracks, outrigger reactions, and prolonged static storage loads. In many scenarios, the structural design is governed not by cumulative traffic P E XTREME OPERATIONAL LOADS IN PORT AREAS ort pavements are subjected to a wide variety of operational loads that differ fundamentally from those typically considered in conventional road pavement design. In addition to standard commercial truck traffic, port infrastructure must accommodate heavy cargo-handling machinery, mobile cranes, container handling systems, oversized cargo transporters, and the long-term storage of massive industrial components. Consequently, the magnitude, spatial distribution, and duration of loads acting on the pavement structure are substantially more severe than those encountered on public highways [1,3].

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