A36 Skew Bridge
| Project name: | A36 Skew Bridge |
| Client: | Highways Agency |
| Business(s): | Civil Engineering |
| Sector(s): | Transport - Highways |
| Location: | Wiltshire |
| Type of contract: | Target Cost |
| Contract value: | £4.7 million |
| Duration: | June 2003 - June 2004 |
| Contact email: | civilengineering@osborne.co.uk |
This project to improve safety on a heavily skewed Victorian brick arched railway bridge was undertaken as part of the Highways Agency Area 2 Structures Framework. It involved constructing a footbridge on either side of the existing bridge to provide a safe route for pedestrians and cyclists crossing the bridge. The new footbridges incorporated parapets that can provide containment for vehicles up to 40 tonnes and prevent them from falling onto the railway lines below.
Space on the site was extremely limited, making it far from easy to carry out extensive sheet and bored piling, install major temporary works to support unstable embankments and build the four new abutments. The new bridges consist of pre-stressed concrete beams with in situ deck, and were built off line and then slid (by strand-jacking) into position over the railway during overnight possessions. The project also involved diverting gas mains and NTL cables and protecting BT and electric cables.