Bridge Management System in Sabah S. Dullah Faculty of Engineering, Universiti Malaysia Sabah, Jalan UMS, 88400 Sabah, Malaysia M. K. N. Jausus Faculty of Engineering Universiti Malaysia Sabah, Jalan UMS, 88400 Sabah, Malaysia H.Ghazali Faculty of Engineering, Universiti Malaysia Sabah, Jalan UMS, 88400 Sabah, Malaysia Abstract—A good bridge management starts with good information on bridge conditions. In many developed and developing countries, including Malaysia, a bridge management system has been implemented for the maintenance of bridge structure. This paper discusses the components of bridge management system in Sabah, its advantages and disadvantages of the system. Comparison on various bridge management systems in established countries are also discuss in order to provide ways to improve the existing system in Sabah. This paper will also discuss the new system which can use to overcome the weakness of the existing system. The methodology used to conduct this study includes literature search and interview with the professional involved on bridge management system in Sabah. Keywords—bridge management system, components, advantages, disadvantage, sabah I. INTRODUCTION Bridges are important links in any national road or rail network, and the fund required to build them is high. If its carrying capacity is impaired or collapsed, resulting cost as a result of road closure and rehabilitation could double [1]. Bridges are susceptible to many defects during their service lives [2]. A great numbers of Malaysian bridges built some 40 years ago are showing varying degrees of deterioration. This situation is not unique to Malaysia. Indeed many countries are facing similar problem. Hence, in many developed and developing countries, including Malaysia, a bridge management system (BMS) has been implemented for the maintenance of bridge structure. This project researches and investigates the maintenance technology and system on bridges. This project also focuses on ways or methods that can be added or replaced with outdated process/procedures in the existing bridge management system in order to improve the system itself. A study on various bridge management systems in established countries are conducted in order to provide ways to improve the existing system. It will also serve as a comparison between BMS of other developed countries to the BMS used in Malaysia, particularly Sabah. Interviews are conducted to collect data on the nature of the bridge management system being implemented, understand the practices used for determining bridge conditions and the advantages and disadvantages of the current BMS. End results will provide detailed information on the bridge management systems in Sabah’s urban areas, with suggestions on improvement of the system wherever possible. Objectives of this study include: 1. To investigate the components of bridge management system (BMS) in Sabah. 2. To identify the advantages and disadvantages of BMS in Sabah 3. To suggest measures to improve BMS used in Sabah. II. BACKGROUND STUDY A. Definitions of Bridge Management System The following is a list of definitions of BMS according to different authors. 1. Assisting decision makers in maximizing the safety, serviceability and functionality of bridge networks within the available budget by making cost-effective maintenance, rehabilitation, and replacement (MR&R) decisions [3]. 2. A tool designed to help maximize the use of available information for the inspection, rehabilitation, and replacement of bridges and optimal time to perform necessary improvements for any bridge [4]. 3. A decision support tool that supplies analyses and summary data, uses mathematical models to make predictions and recommendations, and provides the means by which alternative policies and programs may be efficiently considered [5]. 976 International Journal of Engineering Research & Technology (IJERT) Vol. 3 Issue 8, August - 2014 ISSN: 2278-0181 www.ijert.org IJERTV3IS080833 (This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.)