The challenge
We were contacted by Balfour Beatty Rail Limited to provide a temporary bridging solution to support existing services during the reconstruction of the Horlicks Bridge at Stoke Poges near Slough, Berkshire. Site restrictions in this busy area presented a challenge with limited space to pre-build the structure.
Our solution
We provided a temporary bridge spanning 50m. The Mabey Universal Vehicle Bridge standard components were used to create an 11 bay reinforced box bridge. The bridge provided a 2.4m wide platform allowing for services to be laid across. The design of the bridge had a support load of 5kN/m to allow for the services plus pedestrian loading for access.
The structure used standard bridge panels as bracing and to provide support for the decking minimising cost and build time. The bridge was supported on 2 No. 3m x 3m Mat 125 towers, 5m high. Using the MU bridging system in reinforced box configuration allowed pre construction of the structure in the minimum time prior to the lift in.
A large 750Te capacity crane was successfully used to lift the bridge into position over the 4 track section of the line with less than 3 hours in which to lift it into position. Stiffness of the structure was critical and had to be kept to a minimum due to the delicate nature of the multiple services that are carried on the structure and their limited clearance over the railway deflections.
