Assessment Procedure and Rehabilitation Criteria for Riveted Road Bridges

Abstract

Traffic patterns increasing and the degradation of existing roadway steel bridges due to poor maintenance has led to the need of an assessment deciding whether to retrofit or to supply a structure replacement. This paper focusses on the rehabilitation of steel truss bridges in order to extend the lifetime of such bridges. Two case studies are presented: the Adige Bridge, located between the provinces of Padua and Rovigo, and the Po Bridge, which connects the Rovigo and Ferrara provinces in northern Italy. In both cases, stress data and displacements are obtained by a 3D finite element model and the results show that loads defined in the European code are enough to compromise material strength in several sections. Appropriate retrofitting criteria are proposed and compared. A multi-criteria decision approach is introduced at the end of the paper to help in the decision-making process of selecting the best option for an additional reinforcement strategy, taking into account four criteria: reliability of the solution, ease of construction, estimated cost and embodied carbon.