Landmark HS2 bridge completed

Concrete Connect editor, Clare Howcutt-Kelly recently attended an event to showcase the completed HS2 bridge at Balsall Common in the West Midlands.

The visit was facilitated by the HS2 and Balfour Beatty VINCI teams. The bridge, measuring 185m long, 19.5m wide and 13.9m high, took a fifty-strong team 18 months to build and used 7,200 cubic metres of concrete and 1,800 tonnes of steel. The bridge comprises precast and on-site poured elements with a base slab of 2,401 cubic metres of concrete alone.

The bridge will take the high-speed line under the A452 Kenilworth Road and is the latest to be completed on the project. Route-wide, HS2 is building more than 500 bridging structures – including over 50 major viaducts, with the entire HS2 project supporting more than 31,000 jobs.

As a feat of engineering, the self-contained box bridge at Balsall Common involved the installation of 12 parapets, which will act as safety barriers when traffic eventually passes over the bridge.  The structure which stands at 13.9m tall and 19.5m wide, will be backfilled with 80,000 cubic metres of material excavated from an HS2 cutting made below ground level in nearby Berkswell. Work will also take place on the embankment and landscaping works will be carried out on either side of the bridge.

The huge operation has been delivered by HS2’s construction partner for the West Midlands, Balfour Beatty VINCI (BBV), who are constructing 90km of HS2 between Long Itchington in Warwickshire to the centre of Birmingham, and on to Staffordshire. Civil engineering and groundwork specialists Galldris supported BBV with the complex build programme.

Speaking at the event, Jack King, HS2 project manager, said: “Completion of the A452 Kenilworth Road over-bridge 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.”

Shamus Banaghan, senior project manager, Balfour Beatty VINCI, who gave a presentation at the event said: “This bridge is a key structure that will allow HS2 trains to pass underneath the A452 near Balsall Common. Standing almost 14 metres high and 185 metres in length, the scale of this achievement is clear to see.

“The recent installation of the final parapets on the roof deck is a special moment for the entire BBV delivery team and our key supply chain partners, who’ve worked tirelessly over the past 18 months to reach this point.”