Infrastructure
Health Report
Road Sector Trial VersionMay 2016

Higashi Akiru Bridge, Tokyo
Selected as the JSCE Civil Engineering Heritage, 2015

公益社団法人Seiso Railway No. 2 Tunnel, Chiba
Selected as the JSCE Civil Engineering Heritage, 2014

Message from thePresident of JSCE

Infrastructure has contributed greatly to the rapid economy growth and improvement in qualityof life. However, the aging of such infrastructures is now a major social issue. Thus far, focus has
Noriaki Hirose
been placed on assigning a budget and engineers to new construction projects. In the future, it will(103rd JSCE President)
become necessary to shift these resources to the maintenance and updating of aging infrastructure.
Infrastructure is closely related to the lives and economic activities of all people. In order for us in thepresent and subsequent generations to enjoy lives that are safe, secure and full of vitality, it is essential to adequately maintainand update infrastructure.
Due to the importance of infrastructure development and management, current assessment of overall infrastructure by civilengineers’ societies is being conducted in the United States and the United Kingdom, and the results thereof are becoming
widely recognized. Based on the deterioration state and management system of the infrastructure in Japan, JSCE, as a third
party institution, has also decided to assess the soundness of the current infrastructure. The target of the assessment shall be
the overall infrastructure, and the results will be summarized in the “Infrastructure Health Report” which is scheduled to bereleased. This year, preceding other infrastructure, a trial health report has been prepared with roads as the target, including
bridges and tunnels for which there is already a systematic implementation of inspection and diagnosis.
Through the widespread understanding of the current status of the infrastructure as well as the recognition of the importanceand future tasks for the maintenance and updating of the infrastructure by the Japanese citizens, we hope that you will takeaction and cooperate with us in seeking the solution to the issues.

Results of the Health Assessment in the Road Sector

Bridges D-

Tunnels D-

Road Surface(Pavement) C urrently, deterioration in many bridges is obvious. There is a need for urgentC
maintenance and repair and to stop the progression of the deterioration process.
Deterioration is obvious in many tunnels and maintenance and repairs on thedeteriorating sites are urgently needed.
There are always certain sections on road surfaces (pavement) which deteriorate
quickly, and early repairs in accordance with the maintenance evaluation level arerequired.
Regarding the management system, since the revision of the Road Act in 2014, thesystem for the maintenance of bridges and tunnels has improved. However, there aredifferences in efforts regarding the formulation of tunnel maintenance plans according
to the administrator. Regarding the road surface, there are some administrators who
have not yet formulated a maintenance plan. Thus, the formulation of a plan and theenhancement of a system for implementing the plan are desired.

Health Assessment Index
Health assessment is carried out by means of a method developed independently by JSCE, that of collecting released
published data and surveys of inspection results and maintenance system information of the facilities. By assessing data
provided by each administrator, the national average is expressed as an index.

ASoundHealth Assessment Index of the Facilities
BSatisfactory

CCaution

DWarningECriticalN o d e t e r i o r a t i o n i s Deterioration is seen in Deterioration is progressing Deterioration is obvious in Deterioration is serious
seen in most facilities
some facilities
in quite a few facilities, many facilities, requiring overall, requiring urgent
requiring early repairs
repairs and reinforcements measures

Management System of the Facilities
The state in which, if the present The state in which, if the present
management system continues, the management system continues, thehealth condition will likely progress current health condition will continue.
toward improvement.

2The state in which, unless there is animprovement in the present management
system, there is a possibility that the healthcondition will deteriorate.

Infrastructure Health Report

There are approximately 720,000 bridges (2m or longer) in Japan. The majority of them were constructedduring the period of rapid economic growth, in other words, their in-service period has exceeded 30~50Bridgesyears. In 10 years, 40% of all bridges will have exceeded the in-service period of 50 years. Of that number,there are approximately 230,000 old bridges which have no record of the construction year.
It can be assessed regarding the current health condition of bridges is that deterioration is obvious inmany bridges. It is expected that deterioration over time due will continue. Therefore, many bridges
require repairs and continuous implementation of adequate management is essential. The level of health varies according
to the administrator as indicated in Table 1. The ratio of bridges managed by the prefecture and government-ordinancedesignated cities is approximately 25% of all bridges nationwide, those managed by municipalities constitute approximately
65%, totalling approximately 90% of all bridges. Therefore, measures are required to ensure that some bridges do not fall under
the dangerous category.
Although many bridges are obviously deteriorating, a long-term management plan has been established by various
administrators and regular inspections held once every 5 years have become compulsory, indicating that measures arebeing carried out with recognition for the importance of management. If the present maintenance system continues and isimplemented effectively, it is anticipated that the health condition of bridges will improve. However, the number of engineers
engaged in the maintenance of bridges cannot be said to be sufficient, requiring the improvement both in the quality andquantity of engineers.
Road sector

D

Table 1 Health Status by Administrator

Nationally-managedroads
CRoads managed by theprefectures and government
ordinance-designated cities
DRoads managed bymunicipalities

Intracity roads managed
by Expressway Companies

Intercity roads managed
by Expressway Companies

DCC

There are approximately 10,000 road tunnels in Japan. As with bridges, the majority of them wereconstructed during the period of rapid economic growth, in other words, tunnels reaching 30~50 in-service
Tunnels
years are increasing.
Regarding the number of tunnels by administrator (Table 2), approximately 30% are managed nationallyor by Expressway Companies, approximately 50% are managed by the prefectures or government
ordinance-designated cities and approximately 20% are managed by municipalities.
As for the health condition, tunnels managed nationally, those managed by Expressway Companies, those managed by theprefectures or government ordinance-designated cities, those managed by municipalities were in good health condition, in thatorder. Although they are not in a serious condition, it is thought that there are a great deal of tunnels requiring early repairs.
However, this is the first year that a systematic inspection was carried out, and there is a possibility that some administrators
may have started inspecting tunnels with a prior knowledge of an inferior health condition.
Regarding the system of managing the health of tunnels, from the perspective of the storage of facility register management,
inspection records and repair records, tunnels managed by the Expressway Companies were good and those managed by theprefecture were basically good. However, tunnels managed by municipalities require future effort. Each administrator has
proposed a long-term inspection plan and therefore, improvements in the health condition of tunnels are anticipated, althoughplanning and improvements in the securing of the number of inspection engineers and certification of skills are necessary.
Road Sector

D

Table 2 Health Status by Administrator

Nationally-managedroads
CRoads managed by theprefectures and government
ordinance-designated cities
DRoads managed bymunicipalities

Intracity roads managed
by Expressway Companies

Intercity roads managed
by Expressway Companies

DCC

The total length of paved roads in Japan is approximately 1 million km, with a surface area ofapproximately 5,300km² (roadway) and the length thereof is equal to 25 times the circumference ofRoad Surface
the earth, with the area approximately 2.4 times the size of Tokyo Metropolis. A paved road surface is(Pavement)
connected to running safety and is a structure with a prerequisite of renewal after a set period of time.
Damages to such road surface have a direct and major effect on the safety and comfort of the users.
The health condition of the surveyed road surface (pavement), excluding that of municipalities, wasrelatively satisfactory. However, there were some areas in which the deteriorated road surface was notadequately renewed. The degree of health differs according to the administrator, as shown in Table 3. The control value
differs according to road use, such as expressways requiring a road surface with a greater level of soundness due to high-speed
travel. However, there are arterial roads which do not satisfy the control values suitable for roads managed nationally and byprefectures or government ordinance-designated cities. Such roads require further improvements in their health condition.
Concerning the maintenance system, there are slight differences according to the administrator, and although expressways
have a fixed assessment system, the majority of administrator overseeing general roads have such problems as thepostponement of necessary repairs, increase in complaints, and increase in cases of management flaws, etc. It is of great
concern that the maintenance of the current health condition of roads is becoming more and more difficult each year.
Furthermore, there are administrators who have not yet formulated a pavement maintenance plan, and so it is hoped that plans
will be formulated in order for effective maintenance to take place.
Road Sector

C

Table 3 Health Status by Administrator

Nationally-managed roads
CRoads managed by the prefecture andgovernment ordinance-designated cities
C

Intracity roads managed byExpressway Companies
B

Intercity roads managed byExpressway Companies
BNote) Roads managed by municipalities were not surveyed in this report; therefore, they are not the target of assessment.

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In preparing this health report:
The purpose of the infrastructure health assessment is designed not only to assess
the infrastructure but also to gain the understanding of the Japanese citizens andto indicate the necessity of formulating a policy for improvement. The assessment
results of bridges, tunnels and road surface (pavement) in the road sector all havedifferent assessment items and standards; thus, the results thereof are not intended tobe compared. Regarding the road surface (pavement), there is no inspection manual
designated by the state and therefore is an assessment based on questionnaire
surveys by JSCE. In addition, due to municipalities not being the target of this survey,
we will continue to seek methods of carrying out surveys in this area.
The focus of the report and evaluation was the level of soundness (damage level)
attributed to aging. However, it is necessary to evaluate the intended function andphysical capacity of the infrastructure as it is done in the U.S. and U.K. (i.e. road capacity
and safety, safety of river flood control and water utilization, etc.) in the future.
In order to effectively maintain the vast infrastructure scale, it is anticipated that withthe deepening of understanding of the citizens regarding the health report results,
the administrators in turn, will further improve their maintenance based on the above
results.

Kotaro Hashimoto,
Chairman, Special
Committee on
Health Assessment ofInfrastructure(101st JSCE President)

Maintenance and Updating Issues and Solutions

Extending the life of infrastructure and adding new functions thereto by means of updating contributeto alleviating the cost burden to the next generation as well. Maintenance of infrastructure consistsof 3 factors, namely, (1) a system to carry out maintenance, adequate inspections, diagnosis andmeasures to implement it, (2) development of an effective and efficient maintenance technique, and(3) budgetary provisions. If there were deficiencies in any of the above factors, maintenance cannot beadequately carried out.
Regarding an adequate system and implementation, administrators must acknowledge that strict
demands will be placed on their managerial responsibilities and capable engineers must be assigned whocan adequately determine the deterioration state of the infrastructure and the countermeasures thereof.
Additionally, there is a need to establish an arrangement for maintenance engineers to achieve technicaladvancements and to utilize such advancements. A certification system by private sectors has beenadopted, and through clinical practice and examinations, cultivating manpower with practical skills andutilizing such personnel are essential.
As to maintenance technology, new techniques need to be adequately evaluated and an arrangement
and contract system to promote their use are required. Advancements in nondestructive inspections areremarkable; therefore, it is indispensable to promote the streamlining of standards and systems based onlatest technologies and inspection data.
Concerning budgetary provisions, it is necessary to have the basic understanding that deterioration of
infrastructure leads to social insecurity and economic stagnation. Maintenance entails an accumulation ofdaily effort, and administrators need to secure a long-term, stable budget. A system design in which there
is a sound growth in maintenance businesses is essential.
In addition, there are many facilities, although sound, do not have the basic physical capacity due tounderestimation at the design stage. However, in view of the intensification of effects such as the frequent
occurrence of earthquakes and the increase in torrential rainfall in recent times, this situation is far fromideal. Examinations of physical capacity and urgent improvements thereto are indispensable.

Future Plans

Health assessment will be carried out for overall infrastructure.
In 2016, we plan to release the health report for rivers and sewage systems. In addition, there will be afollow-up in the road sector.
From 2017 onward, health reports for various infrastructure, beginning with ports, will be released instages. Additionally, health reports for various infrastructure are scheduled to be released every 5 years
henceforth.

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