Network Rail and its principal contractor Story have started a six-month project to refurbish a 140-year-old railway bridge over Salkeld Street in Glasgow.

An ongoing £1.5m programme of repairing bridges near Glasgow Central is in progress and is set to continue until next March.

As well as spanning Salkeld Street, the bridge crosses the West Coast Main Line.

Repair work will include removing and replacing the rivets that hold the steel in place, repairing the steelwork, and repainting the bridge.

Whilst engineers are working on the bridge, ‘ballast retention’ work will be carried out to stop ballast escaping and falling from the structure.

Scaffolding has been erected to allow engineers to work safely on the structure, and will be in place for the duration of the works.

The initial work on the west side of the bridge has already started, and will continue until later this month.

While that is going on, a single-lane underneath the bridge will be closed to road traffic. Later in November, work will transfer to the east side until, with a single-lane closure of the southbound road.

A similar programme of refurbishment of the railway bridge at Eglinton Street is due to start soon, and Network Rail will provide an update ahead of it starting.

Among the bridges where work has already been completed are those at Yorkhill, Saltmarket, and on on Bell Street in the east end of Glasgow.

Over £1.95 billion is being invested to increase the reliability and improve the performance on Scotland‘s Railway, and the bridge works are part of the wide-ranging bridge modernisation programme.

“The essential maintenance and renewals work at Salkeld Street bridge helps Network Rail continue to run a safe and reliable railway throughout Glasgow and the surrounding areas.
“This vital work will not only improve the look of the 140-year-old bridge, it will also extend its lifespan for up to two decades.

Christina Thomson, scheme project manager, Network Rail