Scottish engineers saluted for Ravenscraig bridge project

Scotland’s Railway, the alliance between the publicly sector management and the infrastructure agency Network Rail have successfully installed a new 5,000-tonne bridge on the West Coast Main Line (WCML) at Ravenscraig in North Lanarkshire. The 16.9-million-pound project was delivered through an agreement between North Lanarkshire Council and Network Rail to construct a new road under the railway line as part of the ongoing regeneration of the former steelworks site near Motherwell. The bridge structure, which carries the main line railway over a new road alignment, was moved in what engineers have called the biggest operation of its kind in Europe.

The installation phase of the project had been timed to coincide with a long term closure of the WCML to allow the remodelling of Carstairs Junction, a short distance further south.

Part of a wider investment

The installation phase has been a relatively short part of the entire project. Over the last ten months, Network Rail and STORY Contracting engineers cast the bridge at Network Rail’s compound next to the WCML and prepared to move it into position from April 1 to April 10. During the installation [1], the team excavated approximately 36,000 tonnes of material from the railway embankment and removed the track and overhead line equipment.

The bridge and support structure, totalling around 6,000 tonnes, were then driven into position using remote-controlled vehicles called self-propelled modular transporters (SPMTs) in what is believed to be the biggest move of its kind in Europe. [embedded content] After the bridge was installed, the track and overhead line equipment were reinstated before a series of signalling work took place and the line was reopened.

The council will now progress with the construction of a new dual carriageway with pedestrian and cycle paths, as part of a wider investment to open the area for future development. Ravenscraig was once dominated by a huge steelworks, for which the area had become synonymous.

Major milestone in this huge construction project

The work was carried out at the same time as the 160 million pound (around 183 million euro) investment at Carstairs, also on the WCML. The triangular junction at Carstairs provides a west-east route between Glasgow and Edinburgh, and north – south branches from those cities to join the WCML.

New freight loops, capable of accommodating 775m-long trains are also being installed. Overall, speeds through the junction will be improved. While long distance WCML services will still be affected, local and outer urban trains should soon be running again from Glasgow Central, particularly service the county town of Lanark.

“Given the sheer size and scale of the bridge, it also represents a significant piece of engineering work, made possible by successes in innovation and collaboration with our major contracting partner, STORY”, said Jeremy Spence, Senior Programme Manager, Network Rail, in praise of the project team. “The upcoming intense period of activity marks a major milestone in this huge construction project, with Network Rail, Story, and North Lanarkshire Council working closely over the last year to get it to this point.” The project represents over 16 million pounds ((just over 18 million euro) worth of investment in the local area from North Lanarkshire Council and Glasgow City Region. Once complete, it will allow the local authority to continue the regeneration of the area, bringing vacant and derelict land back into use while helping to create jobs and connecting people and businesses across the whole region.

References

^ installation (www.railtech.com)