摘要: |
The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) has launched a major new strategic initiative designated as a flagship research project, "The Long Term Bridge Performance Program (LTBP Program )". Authorization of the program was included in legislation for surface transportation programs enacted by the U.S. Congress in 2005: The Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU). The LTBP Program is intended to be a 20-year undertaking, with the global objective of collecting scientific quality data from the nation's highway bridges, as representing critical node-points of the highway transportation network. The LTBP program includes detailed inspection, periodic evaluation and testing, monitoring, and forensic investigation of representative samples of bridges nationwide. The program will deliver a high-quality quantitative database for highway bridges that will provide greater knowledge about bridge performance and degradation, support better design methods and performance predictive models, and support advanced management decision-making tools. |