Bridge Inspection Interval Tolerance
Bridges are to be inspected in the month due unless otherwise approved by the State Bridge Inspection Program Manager.
To accommodate situations such as severe weather, bridge inspection safety, schedule optimization or other unique situations that may cause an adjustment to the scheduled inspection date, 23 CFR 650.311 has set requirements for bridge inspection interval tolerances:
- The acceptable tolerance for inspection of bridges on intervals of less than 24 months is two months beyond the month in which the inspection was due (i.e., for inspection interval of 12 months, acceptable to inspect in the 14th month)
- The acceptable tolerance for inspection of bridges on intervals of 24 months or greater is three months beyond the month in which the inspection was due (i.e., 27th month)
- Exceptions to the inspection tolerance due to rare circumstances must be approved by FHWA in advance of the inspection due date plus the tolerance mentioned above providing adequate time for review and approval.
Chapter 8, Section 3 – Inspection Documentation and the Bridge Record provides information for the Delayed Inspection Memo that is required if an inspection was performed past the month the inspection was due. When inspections are delayed for reasons other than schedule optimization, the next inspection is to be scheduled on the month the inspection was originally scheduled to occur to return the inspection to the original scheduled month.