Bridge Construction. An Economical and Sustainable Approach

This paper presents a methodology that quantifies the life cycle costs of concrete decks of roadway bridges that supports the decision-making regarding the optimal selection between several construction / repair alternatives. A deterioration model based on the main material and environmental characteristics of bridges is presented. Some of the most up-to-date materials that are used on concrete bridges are also presented and characterized. The quantification of the user costs is presented. These calculations are made considering the vehicle operating costs, the cost of time and accident costs. The user costs are determined by comparing the traffic costs under free flow conditions with those that arise from disrupting the free traffic flow. The created model is applied to an existing bridge, where the determination and comparison of the costs of the application of different repair alternatives are analysed. At the end, the main conclusions and recommendations are presented.