Media centre

Wednesday 4 May 2005

MULTI-MILLION POUND MAKEOVER FOR MORETON’S LEAM BRIDGE

Region & Route:

| Southern: Wessex

| Southern

The £2.3 million transformation of Moreton’s Leam bridge, carrying the railway over the Nene Washes near Peterborough, is now underway.  Network Rail is painting and strengthening the bridge to allow trains to run faster over the line between Peterborough and March, ultimately improving train performance for passengers.  The project has required over 18 months of careful planning, in association with English Nature, to protect the nationally and internationally recognised site of specific scientific interest (SSSI).  Jon Wiseman, Network Rail Route Director said: “Network Rail is committed to investing in its assets to ensure the safety and reliability of the country’s railway.  The work to Moreton’s Leam bridge is really important to allow us to remove an existing speed restriction, which will mean faster train journeys on this line.  This will enhance the performance of this stretch of railway, improving train punctuality for passengers.” Planned in two stages, the first phase of work was completed over the May bank holiday weekend.  A team of 50 engineers worked around the clock for a total of 110 hours to strengthen one side of the 90 metre long, 3-span steel bridge.  The remainder of the work will be carried out over the Spring bank holiday weekend for completion by the end of May. The environmental significance of the Nene Washes flood plain, home to protected plant species and a nesting ground for migrating birds, has lead to the use of some unusual working methods by project engineers more used to the traditional railway environment.    Whilst painting the underside of the bridge, Network Rail has employed a unique ‘shrinkwrap’ technique to contain excess paint or materials.  Previously used by the Ministry of Defence for repainting warships, the innovative system bounds the scaffolding with a ‘cling film’ like substance which encapsulates the structure to reduce the chance of environmental damage. In addition, extensive consultation was undertaken with English Nature on the timing of work, wildlife habitats, construction plant requirements and access routes for materials, with careful control of noise and light intrusion.  The Environment Agency provided additional advice on site access and the design of the scaffolding over the water and flood plain.  On completion of the bridge work, the linespeed for trains travelling between Peterborough and March will be raised from 40 miles per hour to 75 miles per hour, reducing journey times for both passenger and freight services.