Life-cycle cost analysis of a bridge in remote mountainous terrain

Abstract

There are various approaches documented and researched to calculate life cycle cost, yet many researchers and applications fail to incorporate user costs to optimize total life cycle costs. To perform a holistic bridge life cycle cost analysis, all the cost components are to be considered. The bridge life cycle cost is divided into: agency cost, user cots and environmental costs. The agency cost comprises of acquisition cost, construction cost, maintenance and repair cost, deck replacement cost and debris removal cost. The user cost constitutes vehicle operation cost (VOC), travel delay costs and crash costs. The environmental costs are out of the scope of the study hence are not calculated. In this study, the impact of user cost on total life cycle cost are calculated for a hypothetical bridge failure in remote mountainous terrain based on two alternative detour routes. The study focuses on using a deterministic approach to calculate total bridge life cycle cost with emphasis on user cost. Detailed mathematical calculations are performed using readily available data on bridge characteristic, agency and user cost components. A sensitivity analysis is performed on two detour route alternatives. The selection of the two detour routes is done based on the availability of possible options around the selected bridge. The results from the user cost calculation for the two detour routes and their impact on total life cycle cost are presented in this study along with the total bridge life cycle cost.