AN OVERALL RISK-BASED ASSESSMENT PROCEDURE FOR SUB-STANDARD BRIDGES

The authors suggest that the work required to strengthen sub-standard bridges needs to be prioritised taking into account costs and risks to the public. A framework is proposed for a risk-based approach for assessment of bridges and simplified methods for risk evaluation. The procedure is most appropriate for bridges which do not satisfy the requirements of a standard assessment of load carrying capacity using current assessment codes. The method is part of an ongoing research project intended to be dovetailed into the strategic research programme being conducted by the Highways Agency. The prupose of the proposed methodology will be to identify the low risk bridges for which traffic disruptive interim measures may not be necessary and to select appropriate remedial actions. For the covering abstract see IRRD 898092.