A group of experts inspected 600 bridges in different cantons and determined that 57% (342) of them have at least one element qualified as serious damage.
The Municipal Management Unit, of the Materials and Structural Models Laboratory of the University of Costa Rica (LanammeUCR), visited 49 cantons between 2010-2018 with the aim of creating an inventory and status of the structures so that the municipalities can improve the investment and maintenance of their bridges.
Another finding is that the most frequent deterioration occurs in the pillars, because their foundations are built in areas susceptible to the action of river beds or there have been important changes in the basins.
In addition, 65% of the bridges have only one lane, most of them have simple beam and steel type superstructures (which makes them more susceptible to corrosion), and 70% of the cantonal bridges are less than 15-meters long.