Ground anchors corrosion - the beginning of the end

Ground anchor corrosion is a common problem for anchored slopes in Taiwan. It is partly due to the humid climate condition and abundant groundwater in the slope and partly due to poor corrosion protection of anchor design and construction. In 2010, an anchored slope at Taiwan National Freeway No. 3 failed suddenly after 13 years of service. It buried 3 cars and killed 4 people. It caught the public’s attention and initiated the island-wide program on over hauling the anchors slopes in Taiwan. Since this event, the Ministry of Transportation and Communication (MOTC) of Taiwan government had launched an extensive inspection and maintenance program for the existing anchored slopes along the freeways, highways, and railways. Totally, more than 100,000 ground anchors had been inspected. This paper will evaluate the findings from this inspection program. It includes (1) the status quo of the anchors regarding the corrosion condition and the residual load that remained on the existing anchors; (2) remedial measures taken to sustain the serviceability of existing corroding anchors; (3) measures taken to enhance the long-term durability of new anchors without changing the strand material and the practice of anchor construction commonly used by the local contractors