HS2 engineers have lifted the last of six enormous viaduct spans that will carry high speed trains over the M42 in the West Midlands, during a weekend closure of the motorway.
The complex multi-stage operation at the Water Orton viaduct site was completed in the early hours of Monday 21 September, with the motorway reopening at around 4am as planned.
To take full advantage of the closure, a separate team – three miles to the south – spent the weekend lifting the last beams that will support another major HS2 bridge known as the ‘twin box’.
The 300 metre long structure near the NEC is formed of two boxes that will support the railway as it passes over the carriageways. This approach has been chosen because of the angle at which the railway must cross the motorway.
The operations at both sites – which builds on progress over four weekends this summer – was led by HS2’s West Midlands construction partner, Balfour Beatty VINCI (BBV).
Engineers can now proceed to the final stages of construction – installing the remaining parapets along the sides of the Water Orton viaducts, and the final concrete pours on the twin box ready for railway tracks to be laid.
HS2 is now at the peak of construction, with site teams focused on boosting productivity route wide. This is happening in parallel with Chief Executive Mark Wild’s comprehensive reset of the project, designed to ensure that the remainder of the work is delivered as efficiently as possible and for the lowest reasonable cost.
During the September closure, a 150-strong-team installed the final 44 beams over the southbound carriageway, completing the roof which will carry trains over the M42 near the NEC.
The twin box roof is formed of 175 individual beams, which weigh between 56 and 92 tonnes. A 300-tonne crawler crane lifted and lowered each of the 23 metre beams into position, bridging the gap between the supporting walls and columns either side of the carriageway and inside the central reservation
The completed structure now stands 10-metres-high, with two 145metre long walls and 46 internal columns supporting the 9,800-tonne beamed roof.
Oliver Shore, Project Director for Balfour Beatty VINCI, said:
“The twin box and Water Orton Viaducts are three major structures that cross the busy M42 motorway. In just four weekends, we’ve completed the bridging works on each of them, closing the gap over the north and southbound carriageways.
“This was a huge engineering challenge and I’m so proud of the way our teams have responded. Their skill, dedication and hard work throughout the summer means we can move forward to the next exciting phase of our work.”
BBV’s engineers will begin extending Water Orton 2 by a further 40m, closing the final gap above Gilson Road.
There will be a further closure of the M42 from 9pm on Friday, 23 October to 5am on Monday, 26 October to install the viaduct’s parapets on the sections directly above the motorway.
(Pictures: HS2)
