Recommended Reliability Levels for the Evaluation of Existing Bridges According to Eurocodes

Transport infrastructure plays an important role from an economic and management point of view in every country. In developing countries, transport infrastructure has a prominent position in advancing industry and society. Recent developments show that attention should be moved from the design of new structures towards the repair and reconstruction of existing ones to ensure and increase their satisfactory structural reliability and durability. The problem is very urgent because many construction projects, especially transport infrastructure, in most European countries are more than 50–60 years old and require rehabilitations based on objective evaluations. Modified reliability levels for the evaluation of existing bridges were derived on the basis of activities in the department of structures and bridges. The levels are used for determining partial safety factors for resistance depending on the age of the bridge and on its remaining lifetime. New modified reliability levels for the evaluation of existing bridges also affect the partial safety factors for load effects.