HS2 is celebrating the completion of its latest bridge, which will carry the line under the A452 Kenilworth Road, near Balsall Common, West Midlands.
Workers have spent the last eighteen months building the bridge, which is a self-contained ‘box’ bridge structure. It is 185 metres long, 19.5 metres wide and 13.9 metres high, and its construction used 7,200 cubic metres of concrete and 1,800 tonnes of steel.
Fifty people based on the site celebrated the completion work, which involved installing twelve parapets to act as safety barriers when traffic passes over the bridge.
Work will now start on the embankments and landscaping the surrounding area on either side of the bridge, which is necessary in order to realign the A452.
Workers will reuse eighty thousand cubic metres of material, which has been excavated from a cutting nearby in Berkswell, Coventry.
This ‘backfill’ process ensures that the structure is enclosed before the road is moved over the new bridge in early 2025. This will make space for the railway to pass underneath the road.
Balfour Beatty VINCI (BBV) is delivering the project for HS2. The contractor is HS2’s construction partner for the West Midlands and is building ninety kilometres of the high-speed line between Long Itchington in Warwickshire to the centre of Birmingham and on to Staffordshire.
Civil engineering and groundwork specialist company Galldris has supported BBV with the building programme, and the Mott MacDonald and SYSTRA Design Joint Venture (MMSDJV) designed the overbridge.
The construction of HS2 involves building more than five hundred bridging structures, including more than fifty major viaducts, which will cross valleys, rivers, roads and flood plains. The total length of these structures is fifteen kilometres (nine miles).
Some of the HS2 structures have had input from the public, for example, the design of the nearby Balsall Common Viaduct was agreed after consultation with the local community.
HS2’s construction is currently supporting more than thirty-one thousand jobs.
“Completion of the A452 Kenilworth Road overbridge signifies a proud moment for everyone working on the project.
“As we celebrate the installation of the final parapets this week, I’d like to thank our civils contractor, designers and everyone from our wider supply chain, who are safely and successfully delivering this huge feat of engineering.”
Jack King, HS2 Project Manager
Responses
The basic principle of HS2 was fine but it has been poorly thought out and expensive to deliver. No connection to HS1 and design arrangements at the northern end leave it too short to be viable.
But it may be the only rail project left now, given other recent government announcements made, presumably because it has gone too far to cancel.
Hs2 aka “horrendous shamblesx2 ” Vanity project of epic proportions. Upgrade existing lines by adding addional tracks a far more cost effective solution to freight and under capacity. Double the capacity, Half the price and trebble the usage.
Improve roads for cars.
Obviously not bothered about the environment. The whole idea if one looked at the overall picture is not just high speed rail link but also to free up existing lines for more freight traffic and get the polluting lorries of the roads. If we don’t solve the co2 problems you won’t have any ancient woodlands anyway
Unlike other comments here so far – I think that, even with all its faults, HS2 will be a benefit to the country as a whole and far less damaging than continuing with motorway widening. It would be good if modern bridges such as this one could be more graceful. A few curves and maybe better finishing materials could turn something functional into something of joy.
Who cares a bridge is a bridge. How can anyone get excited about a bridge in the news. The only people who care are the ones getting paid silly money to install it. Hate anything hs2 related . Hoping its a big engineering failure that never gets off the ground and to be shown on TV, engineering failures in years to come .
I agree that this misguided project should never have been allowed to ruin so much countryside for so little gain. If it had been designed to carry lorries then it might have made more sense.
Disgraceful pillaging of ancient and irreplaceable woodlands, wetlands and greenbelt.
Totally agree. Utter waste of money to line the pockets of the few