**2. Managing bridges**

All the inspection data should be stored in inventory and inspection databases and they should be used to get information for what to do in the next step of managing bridges. Therefore a kind of managing system is required to use the data and making appropriate and logical decisions for further actions.

### **2.1 Bridge Management System**

Bridge Management System (BMS) has great roles in managing bridges. The main feed into any BMS is inspection data. It is designed to provide information not easily available from available data. BMS can provide the following:


It is obvious that how and to what extents the above mentioned items can be fulfilled by the available data.

In general, the condition of a BMS element is identified by condition states and corresponding condition state language. Each element has a range of minimum to maximum condition states. Information from each BMS element along with expert input to predict how the condition of that element will change over time is used in BMS computer programs. BMS programs can estimate future network funding levels based on the predicted future bridge conditions and the corresponding costs to repair or replace them (Washington State Bridge Inspection Manual, 2010).

The following outline provides a short BMS summary for a typical inspection:

