Frame bridges are coupled to the surrounding soil through their foundations, resulting in intense SSI. Excitation of the bridge superstructure causes displacements at the abutments, generally resulting in a phase-shifted groun. Frame bridges are coupled to the surrounding soil through their foundations, resulting in intense SSI. Excitation of the bridge superstructure causes displacements at the abutments, generally resulting in a phase-shifted ground reaction and radiation damping. The quotient of ground reaction and displacement is both material and frequency dependent. Explicit dynamic calculations are required in various standards for bridges on high-speed lines to ensure normative limits. This dynamic analysis is based on the resonance phenomena between the train crossing and the frame's natural frequencies in bending. It is obvious that, especially here, an exact determination of the natural frequencies in the numerical models is important for determining the resonance speed, as there is no conservative consideration in dynamics. Furthermore, considering radiation damping based on soil-dynamic approaches can noticeably reduce the maximum amplitudes at the resonance point when simulating train crossings. However, due to the massive dimensions of structural members and a large number of constraints, the dynamic system of railroad frame bridge. ••Investigation of the dynamic behaviour of embedded frame bridges.••Identification of the key factors influencing the dynamic behaviour of railway frame bridges.••Different modelling methods for SSI are compared.••A dynamic design recommendation is presented.Frame bridgeDynamic soil-structure interactionCoupled BEM-FEMDirect methodSubstructure methodHybrid methodSimplified methodDynamic characteristicsRailroad bridges are subject to dynamic loads. According to observations on the railway line between Paris and Lyon, destabilisation of the ballast can occur on a dynamically excited short bridge due to significant vertical accelerations. Therefore, the resulting system behaviour is subject to normative limits (in Europe: ; Germany: ), as the maximum superstructure acceleration must be limited to ensure a stable ballast bed. Fundamental to the dynamic calculation is a precise determination of the modal characteristic, otherwise, discrepancies in the system response (resonant speed of the passing train, maximum accelerations) may occur. Studies regarding the resonance mechanism of railroad bridges due to train induced excitation can be found in Refs. [,,, ], among others. A.