Abstract
The modern orthotropic steel bridge decks have been used for 60 years all over the world for their structural advantages. However, because of complex configurations and stress concentration, many details in orthotropic steel bridge decks are fatigue-sensitive. Thus, it is necessary to evaluate the fatigue performance of orthotropic steel bridge decks and study the maintenance strategy. In this paper, the fatigue performance-based safety evaluation methodology and maintenance strategy of orthotropic steel bridge deck are discussed. Traffic volume is surveyed and vehicle distribution is analyzed in terms of vehicle types and different lanes. In-situ dynamic strain monitoring has been conducted for several days, and acquired data during 24 hours is selected to evaluate the fatigue life of orthotropic steel bridge deck based on S-N curve. In addition to the fatigue performance, maintenance process for orthotropic steel bridge decks is discussed.