Connect Plus completed the installation this week.
The project involved replacing six bridge expansion joints, weighing 80 tonnes each, which had reached the end of their lifecycle having expanded and contracted by over three metres in the heat and cold during the bridge’s 23 year operation.
With over 150,000 vehicles using the bridge daily, traffic flow continuity was critical during the project and Connect Plus, working with its designer Flint &Neill and contractor Jackson Civils, developed a brand new temporary over-ramp system. This allowed the workforce to repair the expansion joints underneath, while traffic passed overhead. Carriageway closures were dramatically reduced compared to typical bridge joint replacement schemes with restriction to times when the temporary ramp system was installed.
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The modular ramp system comprised of 1.2 metre wide units which could be dropped into place, further reducing carriageway closure time. Their built in finger joints allowed the bridge road surface to expand and contract normally and the design of the ramp allowed for vehicles to travel safely at speeds of up to 70mph, well in excess of the limit on the bridge and negating the need for vehicles to slow down. Each ramp was installed and removed four times and each required the removal and replacement of 458 bolts with around 100m3 of concrete removed during the repair process.
(CD/IT)
