Load rating

Bridge load rating is essentially used to determine the live load carrying capacity of a bridge. Dead load demands are subtracted from the section capacity and the resulting number is divided by live load demands (based on the vehicular loading specified in the code). The resulting number is called a rating factor. Rating factor greater than 1 indicates that the bridge is adequate to carry the existing traffic. If the rating factor is smaller than 1, vehicle weight restriction is posted on the bridge to ensure safe operating condition of the bridge.