Media centre

Monday 15 Dec 2014

Christmas boost as Stratton Green bridge in Swindon is to reopen

Region & Route:

| Wales & Western: Western

| Wales & Western

Network Rail is hoping that the reopening of a bridge near to the centre of Swindon will help ease traffic congestion over the festive period.

Stratton Green bridge has been closed to motorists since November 17 to enable engineering work to take place to prepare it for the electrification of the Great Western Main Line through Swindon.

The diversion route set up following the closure has caused delays on the roads, especially during rush-hour, but now Network Rail has said the bridge will reopen at 6am on Saturday 20 December.

The decision to reopen the bridge was taken after the company identified a need for further ground work at the site that does not require a full road closure. Engineers discovered that a number of utility cables were buried deeper than anticipated into the old road that lies under the current structure, and therefore more time would have been needed to divert them which would have impacted on the proposed opening date in April 2015.

Through working closely with the relevant utility companies, it has now been established that the diversion of these services can take place with limited overnight road closures next year, leading Network Rail to take the decision to reopen the road.

Andrew Haynes, Network Rail’s west of England project director, said: “We understand the closure of this bridge has inconvenienced local residents and those who commute into Swindon, which is why we were keen to reopen the bridge once it had been confirmed that these services could be diverted at a later date, without the need for a daytime road closure.

“We hope that once the bridge reopens it will contribute towards easing the traffic situation in the town centre.”

As the majority of the work to prepare the bridge for electrification still needs to take place, Network Rail will continue to work closely with Swindon Borough Council to agree on new dates for the overnight closures and full road closure. The full road closure will be reduced to 12 weeks and will therefore be shorter than the original duration of the first, as the team has undertaken a significant amount of the work needed over the last five weeks.

Andrew continued: “The reconstruction of this bridge is essential to enable a new fleet of longer, faster, quieter and greener electric trains to serve commuters in Wiltshire travelling on the route from London to Cardiff.

“While a further closure is therefore necessary, the work we have already undertaken with the utility companies means the duration of this closure will be shorter, and as before the bridge will remain open to pedestrians and cyclists. Throughout this closure, we will continue to work with the Council and assess the work taking place on site to ensure we minimise disruption to local residents and commuters.”