Maintenance frequency of structural elements of five tons suspension bridges at Morona-Santiago

Abstract

Introduction. Bridges constitute a main part of the road infrastructure works of a Country and therefore the objectives of the Engineering are to ensure their preservation and safe operation. The correct management that an infrastructure operator can develop depends on the information they have regarding the behavior of the elements, their wear and the knowledge of the pathologies that may affect them. However, at the local level, within the Gobierno Autónomo Descentralizado Provincial de Morona-Santiago (GADPMS), Ecuador; It has not been possible to identify any manual for the correct operation of suspension bridges. Methodology. Faced with this problem, descriptive research is proposed, which seeks to measure, through recurrent observation, the percentage of damage present in structural profiles and hangers of suspension bridges that have been subjected to maintenance during the years 2019 and 2020. With the processing of the information obtained, it is sought to propose a planning in which the frequency with which to intervene in the maintenance of structural elements of suspension bridges of Morona-Santiago with a load capacity equal to or less than five tons is defined, for the period 2022-2023.