Field monitoring and research on performance of the Confederation Bridge

The 12.9 km long Confederation Bridge is world's longest prestressed concrete box girder bridge built over salt water. With 45 main spans of 250 m each and a 100-year design life, the design criteria of the Confederation Bridge are not covered by any code or standard in the world. A comprehensive monitoring and research program is being carried out to monitor and study the behaviour and performance of the bridge under ice forces, short-and long-term deformations, thermal stresses, traffic load and load combinations, dynamic response due to wind and earthquake, and corrosion, and to obtain critical information that engineers now lack in these areas. This paper presents details of the monitoring project and research program. The project will also provide important information for effective operational management and maintenance of the bridge. The measured data and research results will be valuable for design and construction of other large complex long-span bridges and structures in the future. The monitored data will provide essential information for the improvement of computer modeling and simulation techniques and development of design standards and guidelines for long-span bridges.