A 172-year-old footbridge has been replaced in Huddersfield in preparation for the electrification of the line between Huddersfield and Leeds.

The bridge, in Fieldhouse Lane near Deighton railway station in the suburbs of Huddersfield, has been replaced with a higher and thinner structure that provides sufficient clearance to install overhead electric wires as part of the Transpennine Route Upgrade. Whilst the bridge was being replaced, the line was closed and trains diverted via Brighouse and the Calder Valley line.

The bridge was replaced over the weekends of 6th/7th and 13th/14th August by 150 rail engineers working for a total of 4,700 hours around the clock. Although the work didn’t affect road users, its replacement affected pedestrians, and the bridge has now been reopened for pedestrians.

Because access to the site was restricted, the existing bridge was dismantled piece by piece using a Kirow rail crane. Each piece of the bridge weighed up to 16 tonnes and the girders 28.5 tonnes.

The new bridge deck was constructed in Irlam, Greater Manchester. It was transported by road as a single unit to near Deighton station, where it was loaded onto a specially adapted trailer for movement to site.

As well as providing more clearance for overhead lines, replacement of the bridge will allow the line between Huddersfield and Westtown in Dewsbury to be doubled from two to four.

Hannah Lomas, Principal Programme Sponsor for Network Rail, said:

“Completely replacing Fieldhouse Lane bridge is a relatively small but important achievement for the Transpennine Route Upgrade. It takes us a step closer towards our future of faster, more frequent, more reliable rail travel on the Transpennine Main Line.

“We’re very pleased that passengers could continue to travel mostly by train over the weekends along the Calder Valley route. This was made possible through years of important resilience-boosting work to run more trains, reliably.

“As the Transport and Works Act Order has been approved, there’ll be many more major upgrades to come in this area.”

Chris Nutton, Major Projects Director for TransPennine Express said:

“The work carried out to completely replace Fieldhouse Lange bridge was another key milestone in the Transpennine Route Upgrade; delivering a railway fit for the 21st Century.

“I would like to thank customers for their cooperation whilst the important work took place.”