Sustainable bridges: Why not?

The long-running debate around climate change and carbon pricing mechanisms has become synonymous with sustainability for many people. However, to deliver true sustainable outcomes for transport infrastructure, it is necessary to consider a broad range of economic, social and environmental aspects.

What is meant by sustainability in the concept of bridges?

This is the topic of my presentation to delegates at the 2019 World Engineering Convention in Melbourne. This international convention is held every four years and is the coming together of engineering minds from around the world.

The three constituent components

Sustainable development can be conceptually broken down into three constituent components – social, environmental and economic. To be most effective in supporting and enhancing the quality of life of people and their communities, a bridge needs to meet these components.

Bridges form an integral part of most transport infrastructure projects. Bridge engineers are strongly placed to influence the sustainability outcomes of such projects. Indeed, it can be argued that bridge engineers have always been key to delivering sustainable solutions through the design, construction and maintenance of bridges and associated structures.

Examples of sustainable bridges

To highlight this point, there are many bridges around the world that exhibit strong sustainability principles. An example of a bridge with strong economic sustainability is Trajan’s Bridge over the Tâmega River in Chaves, Portugal, constructed by the Romans in 150 AD, still in active use today and continuing to support the economic prosperity of the city. Construction of the Mvezo Bridge in Eastern Cape Province, in South Africa, has allowed the once-remote community of Lubondolo to access primary healthcare centres. The long continuous steel spans of the Cunene River Bridge have lower embodied energy than traditional simply supported spans.

These bridges show that sustainability in many different forms can be achieved.

The next steps

My career spanning now over 40 years has been spent designing and planning bridge structures and what drives me is the opportunity to explore new ideas, innovations and sustainable construction. We’ve come a long way since the Romans figured out how to cross a wide river using timber. Bridges have evolved dramatically over history and I don’t see that ever stopping. That’s why I say, ‘sustainable bridges: why not?’.

Bridge engineers have a broad range of tools and considerations for their design and construction processes to imbed and deliver innovative and sustainability solutions. It is a natural part of our psyche to design new bridges and rehabilitate existing structures to meet the future needs of society while minimising the impact on the environment.

It is about optimising the use of materials, and the way in which we design, to deliver efficiently designed durable bridges the transport people for generations to come.

I look forward to conversing with industry peers on Thursday 21st November at the World Engineering Conference around bridge design and construction that delivers a more sustainable future for our society.

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