ABSTRACT
Many small and medium span bridges have been built as reinforced concrete slabs. Assessment of their likely structural response to loading requires a different procedure to that adopted in their design. When assessing the response of an existing slab bridge, the structural form is already determined. It will have been subjected to an unknown load history, including the effects of environmental changes, possible movement of supports and the effects of the construction process, in addition to the effects of gravity loading. An assessment may also be complicated by defects in design, detailing or construction, and by chemically-or physically-induced deterioration. A visual inspection and assessment is, therefore, a necessary preliminary to any structural assessment.
