The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) maintains the third largest state maintained transportation network in the United States. In orderto preserve Virginia's heritage as well as provide for today's mobility needs, VDOT has developed a Historic Bridge Management and Maintenance Plan. The development of the plan was a joint effort of core VDOT Divisions-Structure and Bridge; Environmental; and the VDOT Research Division, the Virginia Transportation Research Council (VTRC). VDOT, through VTRC, had previously documented the various types of older bridges in Virginia, and had identified the historically significant structures (those bridges eligiblefor the United States National Register of Historic Places). Once historic significance had been determined, the next logical step in dealing with these historic structures was the development of a management plan for each historic structure. This project identified and considered the numerous issues (including legal, engineering, regulatory, financial, preservation and political issues) that arise concerning historic bridges. Different kinds of treatment, management, and maintenance options were also identifiedand evaluated. An historic bridge management database was specially developed and refined for this project. Specific recommendations were formulated for each one of Virginia's historic bridges under VDOT purview. For the covering abstract see ITRD E139491.
Abstract