Climate bridges

Bridge Resilience & Climate Effects - How is the climate change impacting the network of bridges?

Background

Sweden operates a national network of ~30,000 bridges that underpin mobility, logistics, and regional cohesion. Most were designed for a past climate and are now exposed to more intense rain, temperature swings, freeze–thaw cycles, and extreme events that accelerate degradation and threaten serviceability. Ensuring safe, reliable, and sustainable operation under changing conditions requires new, data-driven methods that link structural engineering with climate science. This project builds that link, combining vulnerability mapping of existing bridges with Swedish climate projections and AI-assisted prediction to guide proactive maintenance and adaptation.

Aim & Objectives

The aim is to generate actionable knowledge and tools to increase the resilience of Sweden’s existing bridge stock against climate-change hazards.

Objectives.

1. Identify risks and vulnerabilities across bridge types and eras.
2. Map relevant Swedish climate scenarios (RCPs) and environmental drivers.
3. Develop a prediction and mitigation framework that integrates reliability, SHM, LCA/LCC and AI models.
4. Demonstrate and validate on real bridges through case studies in Northern Sweden.

Scientific approach

We integrate finite-element and reliability analysis with statistically downscaled climate data and machine-learning models (ANN/ML) to capture non-linear interactions between environmental loads and structural response. The framework is calibrated/validated using monitored bridges and dedicated case studies (e.g., prestressed concrete and railway bridges), producing sensitivity analyses and adaptation rubrics usable by owners and policy makers

Societal relevance & open science

By prioritising high-risk assets and adaptation actions, the project supports safer transport, better seasonal preparedness, and reduced CO₂e from premature replacements, aligning with SDGs 9, 11, and 13. Results, methods, and curated datasets will be disseminated openly (with appropriate safeguards for sensitive infrastructure information)

Facts

• Financer: Formas (Explore – Open Call 2024)
• Title: How is the climate change impacting the network of bridges?
• Total grant: 6,000,000 SEK
• Timeline: 1 Sep 2025 – 31 Aug 2029
• Principal Investigator: Gabriel Sas (LTU)
• Team: Amir Garmabaki (LTU), Chao Wang (LTU), Vedad Coric (LTU)