Taking Account of Risks in European Public Clients’ Road-Infrastructure Choices

The logic behind European regulations may be summed up in two words: requirements and performance. Europe showed its determination in this domain as early as 1976, when it released a guide for clients and project managers. The six key requirements introduced encompassed the obligation for clients to make decisions only after giving due consideration to the notions of risk and sustainable development, and after evaluating the socio-economic and legal ramifications of the nature of the order. Standardization is shifting from description to performance, with choices made on the basis of results rather than means. The opening up of the European market and the application of the principle of identical performance for all Member States have led to the use of a common, representative, coherent technical frame of reference known as “the Eurocodes”, which constitutes the most commonly-used, up-to-date set of operational and scientific technical rules in Europe. The Eurocodes form the basis for the presumption that CE marking constitutes proof of a structure’s quality. However, the Eurocodes are more than mere rules – they are a rich source of enforceable information for use in approving construction programs. In this article, the authors look mainly at Eurocodes components that relate to risks and are of interest to clients.