Assessment of durability and residual service life of operational supports of rail ay bridges

This article examines the theoretical and applied aspects of assessing the durability and remaining service life of supports on operational railway bridges. The relevance of this topic stems from a combination of several factors: the significant service life of railway bridge structures, the accumulation and development of defects in the main supporting structures, the need to accommodate heavy trains under high traffic conditions, and limited resources for major repairs and reconstruction. 
This article examines the evolution of approaches to durability assessment: from empirical and deterministic to stochastic (probabilistic) models. A retrospective analysis of the industry regulatory framework over a long period of time is performed, summarizing the main approaches and methods characteristic of different periods of structure operation. It is shown that an objective forecast for assessing the remaining service life should be based on historical data on the operation of the structure and the results of periodic observations of the occurrence and development of defects affecting durability. 
This article presents an analysis of the condition of railway bridge channel piers based on statistical data on the presence of defects. Based on the obtained results, graphs of the probability of occurrence of defects in bridge channel piers affecting their service life are constructed depending on the service life of the structures. Probability density plots are presented, which are used to determine the guaranteed service life of the piers before the occurrence of a specific defect. The applicability of this method for predicting the service life and remaining life of piers is established given the availability of relevant statistics on the service history of similar piers. 
It is noted that further research to determine the service life of structures should be based on comprehensive data on the service history of bridge structure components. The data obtained in this study form the basis for predicting the durability parameters of bridge piers and estimating their remaining service life.

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