Abstract
Performance-based design has been prevalent, in which new technology can be easily configured, compared with regulation-based design. In the guard fence design, a new code under the performance-based design concept was implemented and issued in April 1999 in Japan. Also, the environmental problem has become a serious issue in civil engineering field. It is necessary for the researchers and the engineers to pay attention to the environmental impact in addition to the function, safety, cost and aesthetics at all lifecycle stages. In this study, the problems in the guard fence design are first investigated. Taking the results into account, an integrated performance-based design system of bridge guard fences with low environmental impact is developed. It is shown that the system enables us to design the guard fences having high environmental performance and safety performance.
