Bridge Performance Monitoring Based on Traffic Data

Abstract

There is a huge interest in developing new performance metrics, based on monitoring information and considering uncertainties in the resistance and loading effects, to be used by stakeholders when determining maintenance and rehabilitation strategies for existing bridges. The cost of structural health monitoring is generally a criterion in the duration of the monitoring program, and determining when, and how long, monitoring can be interrupted is still a challenge. Providing an approach that quantifies the benefits of monitoring is crucial for stakeholders. The objective of this paper is threefold: build a performance indicator based on monitoring information that considers uncertainties and correlation in recorded data; use this indicator to check and predict if serviceability and safety thresholds are reached; and analyze the impact of short monitoring interruptions on the performance assessment accuracy by balancing cost of monitoring with the efficiency of the results. The originality of the proposed approach consists in the introduction of a performance indicator in the structural reliability analysis, based on monitoring programs. The regression methodology enables one to apply the reliability analysis when monitoring is interrupted during short-term periods and to assess the impact of such interruptions on the structural analysis accuracy. The proposed approach is applied on an existing bridge.