Investigation and proposal of a comprehensive bridge management system for Rwanda

Abstract

The road and bridges are among the most significant elements of the infrastructure system. In order to extend the life span of bridges, the proper preventative maintenance and treatments should be performed at the right time with the effective cost. Many recent studies have been shown that bridges are deteriorated mostly due to aging and the increase of average Daily Traffic (ADT). In Rwanda, the problem seems the same, but some thoughts are that the lack of maintenance, poor design and construction techniques may cause such deterioration with no increase of ADT and sometimes prematurely. The Primary objective of this study is the feasibility and development of a bridge management system which consider the deterioration factors that meet the Rwandan cases. The BMS proposed will also consider the modern technology of smart phones for bridge inventory and inspection which may be used by Engineers at the district level. In this study, the deterioration model for 3 major bridge components (i.e., deck, superstructure, and substructure) have been proposed for the case of Rwanda. The deterioration models were designed based on historical inspection data and the experts’ opinion. The database from the Rwanda Transport Development Agency (RTDA) has been analyzed and used to validate the proposed deterioration model. Among other methods, A survey has been conducted involving 79 different experts and individuals from key bridge management personnel from Rwanda transportation agency, district engineers and other bridge professionals and experts, with purpose of identifying the bridge inspection and maintenance management practices used in Rwanda, the difficulties encountered during bridge maintenance and prioritization process depending on the available budget, etc A computerized software program together with the regression analysis were used for correlation and deterioration analysis on Rwandan bridges respectively. The major finding of this study was the establishment of comprehensive bridge management system for Rwanda 3 main modals, and which should be implemented at district level and sector level" A further study would be welcome for a comparative investigation between different bridge deterioration modals, developed from different analysis. Also, as a part of the proposed BMS, the development of a bridge cost Model would be also a good scope for further study.