Friday 3 Dec 2010
BRUMMIE ENGINEERING HELPS NEW STREET TO SHAPE UP
- Region & Route:
Birmingham engineers marked a major milestone in the Birmingham Gateway project today as they lifted out the final piece of disused concrete from what will become a new station concourse in 2012.
Since April, engineers from Great Barr based contractor Coleman & Company have been carefully removing an entire floor of the old NCP car park adjacent to New Street station – that adds up to over 7,000 tonnes or nearly 1,000 lorry loads of concrete.
Leader of Birmingham City Council, Mike Whitby said; “No one can have any doubt that we are cracking on with this project, step by step we are moving towards the opening of our Gateway station in 2015. It’s great to see in these tough economic times a project of this magnitude is not only underway but on time and under budget and being delivered by Birmingham based engineering companies.”
Andrew Skidmore, Principal Commercial Scheme Sponsor for Network Rail added: “Birmingham relies on rail and we’ve committed to keeping New Street open while we undertake the huge task of rebuilding the station. We can now start the task of turning this huge space into the first half of a brand new station concourse which will open for passengers at the end of 2012.”
When it opens in Autumn 2012, the first half of the new station alone will be around the same size as the pitch at Wembley Stadium. Once this new concourse is open, the existing station will close for redevelopment with the project completing in 2015.
Mick Laverty, Chief Executive at Advantage West Midlands, said: “The Gateway project is of huge economic importance for the region – and today’s milestone is a tribute to the unwavering team work of partners and the ‘can do’ attitude of the skilled workers who are rolling their sleeves up and getting the job done.”
Centro chairman Councillor Angus Adams said: “The New Street Gateway project plays a massive part in the future of Birmingham and I am delighted at the good progress that is taking place.
“Once completed this new station will have a Midland Metro tram link stopping right outside, giving passengers the world class public transport system they need and deserve.”
The Gateway project is backed by Network Rail, Birmingham City Council, Department for Transport, Advantage West Midlands and Centro.
Notes to editors
- The demolition work in the old NCP car park has been carried out by demolition specialists Coleman & Co who are based in Perry Barr, Birmingham. Up to 50 Colemans employees have been working on the car park contract since demolition started in April.
- The new concourse in numbers:
- 120m long – the length of the new concourse – longer than the Wembley Stadium pitch
- 85% of the material removed will be recycled, some of it back in the New Street project
- 7,500 tonnes of material removed, including over 750 individual “chunks” of concrete weighing up to 10 tonnes each.
- 1,000 lorry loads of concrete removed from site
- To allow the station to remain open throughout construction, the project is being completed in two halves. Phase 1 sees a new station concourse being built adjacent to the existing station which remains open for passengers as normal. In Autumn 2012, the new station concourse will open while the existing station closes for redevelopment. The project completes in 2015.
- Birmingham Gateway project will transform New Street into a bright, modern, 21st century focal point for Birmingham. The project will double passenger capacity and deliver:
- a concourse that is three-and-a-half times bigger than at present and enclosed by a giant, light-filled atrium
- more accessible, brighter and clearer platforms, serviced by over 40 new escalators and over 15 new public lifts
- a stunning new station façade
- better links to and through the station for pedestrians, with eight new entrances
- the stimulus for the physical regeneration of the areas surrounding the station
5. Further details can be found at: www.newstreetnewstart.co.uk
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