Fitting hand rails.

BRIDGE 09 – AQUEDUCT/ PEDESTRIAN FOOTBRIDGE – UPDATE TO 7.12.18

Completion is now very close, with the bridge steelwork being completed, checked and fit for use. 

All that is now left is to complete the timber fencing at both ends of the aqueduct and to have a final tidy up and remove all the plant (360 & dumper), site accommodation, cabins, skips, etc. The line has been completely cleared and north running Santa trains will be passing beneath the bridge today! By the end of next week the footpath over the bridge can be re-opened.

West end of the panelling.

Last week about 2/3rds of the parapet rails had been completed, but a larger crane was need for the remaining panels on the east end. Because continuing gales were forecast until about Wednesday, the contractor arranged for the larger lorry with the longest HIAB crane to come in on Monday. Unfortunately this was not available until about 14.00, which was OK as the erectors had a 4 to 5 hour journey back from North Wales. 

Parapet rail panels being erected

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Last panel going in.

With fading light and being at the limit of the HIAB reach the last two panels were lifted in. Sounds easy, but trying to get 5 individual internal tube connectors to align whilst ensuring that the vertical standards were attached to the correct side of the bracket on the side of the box was an extremely difficult task! Fortunately the lights on the crane were very good – without them we would have needed part of another day. The last job was to lift the panels of flooring up to sit on the floor of the bridge, ready for laying.

Engineer checking splice joints

On the Monday afternoon the Engineer from Halcrow (Jacobs) came along to check the structure, particularly the splice joints and bearings on the piers. 

All was found to be sound! So on Tuesday the scaffolders came in and removed all of that equipment.

Aqueduct without scaffold.

On Tuesday the steelworkers then laid the floor panels and started to install the mesh panels to the sides. 

Smoke hood fitted.

By Thursday the structure was virtually completed, including the smoke hood. 

Smoke hoods are more often seen in station bridge locations, but inspection experience has shown that the worst corrosion occurs immediately above the centre of the track – clearly from steam loco exhaust emissions!

Completed walkway.

The next shot is of the finished bridge from the Malvern end at walkway level.

The final shots are of water coming out of the west (Malvern end)

and the shallow pond (app. 30mm deep) in the east (Cotswold) entry channel. 

The small step to the invert, when combined with the approx. 30mm step to the pipe invert through the new headwall from the field side, will, we hope, eliminate silting.

I am very pleased to report that it doesn’t leak!!!!!

Photos courtesy of Alastair Watson & John Balderstone.

8.12.2018 - JOHN BALDERSTONE