What should be considered in bridge maintenance?
Maintenance and repair are two closely related activities aimed at securing that a bridge is retained in a state where it can perform its required functions, while in an acceptable and safe condition.
A bridge is designed to operate in optimum safety and service conditions during its service life, provided that the maintenance plan is strictly followed, carrying out all the required maintenance tasks and conducting the needed inspections at the prescribed intervals.
Once the structure is ready for operation, the owner must schedule and carry out the required maintenance activities consistently according to the guidelines set out in the design.
A concrete/steel bridge can have a service life that can extend to more than 100 years. But this can only be achieved if the required preventive maintenance works are carried out.
Because of the progressive evolution of deterioration actions at the right moment in time will be much simpler and much less costly than postponed actions carried out too late. Despite the best design and execution, inadequate or no maintenance at all can cause a concrete structure to age prematurely and fail.
However, during its service life, a bridge is exposed to weather and climate, loads and overloads, as well as other unforeseen actions (e.g. vehicle collisions, falling trees, etc.), which may debilitate it and cause premature ageing of the structure, leading to deterioration with a consequent decrease in the expected performance or design level of the structure.
Additionally, special attention is needed for the bridge furniture such as expansion joints and bearings, as they have a much shorter service life than the bridge itself. Bridge furniture comprises those components which are ancillary to the main superstructure and substructure, but which are crucial to realising the full life and continuing safe use of a bridge. They are also items on which a lot of money is spent on maintenance work. A thorough appreciation of the functional requirements of these components is required by all those involved in design, construction, inspection and maintenance of effective installations are to be achieved.
