Bridge monitoring

Structural health monitoring (SHM) has the potential to transform the bridge engineering industry by providing stakeholders with additional information to inform decisions about the design, operation, and management of bridges throughout the structures' lifespans. This chapter gives guidance on SHM for engineers who design, build, operate, and maintain bridges. There remain numerous technical challenges to overcome when deploying SHM systems; however the most important issues to consider are how to decide what information is required, and then how to develop a strategy to deliver this information in a form that is easy to interpret and can inform decision making. This chapter gives an introduction to the uses and current capabilities of SHM. Directions for future research and management of bridge SHM systems are also discussed