Major Bridge Projects – A multi-disciplinary approach

Modem bridge building is much more than concrete, steel and money. The overall socioeconomic impact, influence on people migration, traffic, use of primary materials, safety of construction impact on the environment, energy, risk scenarios, health, and most relevant now : climate and CO2 emissions, are amongst the parameters which enter into the decision process at the overall holistic conceptual level, the more detailed level of selection of bridge sites, and selection of bridge types as well as construction methods and selection of materials and products.

The paper illustrates these dilemmas and illustrates by specific examples how this complicated decision process can be managed and structured in order to arrive at an overall satisfactory solution for design, construction and maintenance throughout the lifetime ( life cycle) to these sometimes contradictory parameters and requirements.