Long life bridges

The single market is at the core of what the European Union (EU) represents and for Europe in particular, the single market depends on an effective transportation system. However, much of the EU's stock of an estimated 1 million bridges are old and have deteriorated over time. Many of these structures will soon need replacement or maintenance/intervention strategies to optimize their remaining service life. The Long Life Bridges project is a European 7th Framework-funded project that is using advanced analysis techniques to extend the lives of bridges, allowing them to be kept in service longer than would otherwise be possible. Research is centred on the specific considerations of bridge loading and dynamics, life cycle evaluation and fatigue evaluation. It is being carried out by a consortium consisting of two small/medium enterprises and two universities that bring together expertise in the fields of structural assessment, probabilistic analysis and risk quantification from both academic and industrial backgrounds.