The impact of whole-life costing on the durability design of concrete bridges

摘要

This paper reviews the present role of whole-life costing in the design of concrete highway structures, while noting areas where improvement is needed. A prime design requirement is to better match the technical performance of bridges with their function in service, while recognizing that some bridge elements do have short lives and require replacement. It is sug- gested that the provision of durability is mainly a design issue, and an outline framework is proposed to permit that to happen alongside conventional structural design.