A methodology and decision support system for schedulinginspections in a bridge network following a natural disaster

摘要

Bridges are important parts of transportation networks and among the most expensivernand sensitive transportation infrastructure parts. Following a natural disaster, lifelinesrn(and therefore transportation links) must be quickly restored. Since bridges are most likely to berndamaged by earthquakes, inspection of their structural condition is important for deciding onrnrepair actions and funding. This paper proposes a methodology for deriving an optimal inspectionrnschedule for a bridge network after a seismic event. The methodology is based upon a vehiclernrouting problem formulation and a construction based heuristic for deriving results. It is incorporatedrnin a user-friendly decision support system, aiming at aiding authorities in quicklyrndispatching inspection crews to the bridges of a network, after a natural disaster.