Chungnam Province to Inspect Safety of Sidewalks on 52 Bridges

Implementation of Structural Safety Review Service for Bridge Sidewalks

Chungnam Provincial Government Building. / Provided by Chungnam Province

The Construction Headquarters of Chungnam Province announced on May 23 that it will conduct a 'Structural Safety Review of Bridge Sidewalks' service until September.

This service was initiated based on the assessment that a comprehensive review of bridge sidewalks is necessary following the collapse of the sidewalk section of Jeongja Bridge in Bundang on April 5, 2023.

The inspection will target 52 bridges with separately installed sidewalks, out of the 600 bridges managed by the province.

The Construction Headquarters plans to focus on inspecting the welding areas and bolt fastening conditions of cantilever sidewalk bridges, where one side is fixed to the bridge and the other side is suspended in the air.

If any sidewalk bridge is found to lack sufficient safety based on the inspection results, immediate repair and reinforcement will be carried out. In addition, measures for necessary future repairs, reinforcements, and maintenance will be proposed.

Lee Youngmin, head of the provincial Construction Headquarters, stated, "Although we conduct regular safety management of all bridges under our jurisdiction every year, we have taken preemptive action to ensure residents' safety," adding, "We will continue to do our utmost to prevent safety accidents through ongoing inspections and management."