Until 2005, traffic on the Rio-Niterói Bridge was interrupted whenever wind speeds reached between 55 and 60 km/h. This was because, under such conditions, the Central Span could oscillate by up to 60 cm, either upward or downward. Winds of this magnitude are rare in Guanabara Bay and, for this reason, had not been considered in the initial aerodynamic design.

Concerned that such occurrences could cause cracks in the bridge, a team led by Professor Ronaldo Battista, a full professor at Coppe/UFRJ, developed the so-called tuned mass dampers (TMDs). These are 32 steel boxes attached by springs to a metal structure installed on the beams of the Central Span. Whenever the bridge begins to sway, the dampers activate, counteracting the force of the structure and reducing oscillations by more than 80%.