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Thursday 6 Apr 2023

No crane no gain: Network Rail install first part of new fully accessible footbridge at Llanhilleth station

Region & Route:

Wales & Western: Wales & Borders

Engineers from Network Rail and contractors, AmcoGiffen, completed lifting a fifteen-piece footbridge using a mobile 230-tonne-crane at Llanhilleth, South Wales, last week.  

The five-day closure of the line, from 25 to 30 March, saw a team of 13 engineers guiding the near 65-tonne-footbridge onto its new foundations across the Ebbw Vale line.  

As part of the Ebbw Vale enhancement scheme that will see an increase in service from Newport to Ebbw Vale town, the crane lifts took only a day-and-a-half in some very wet weather conditions to complete.  

The footbridge, manufactured away from site, was installed section-by-section and consisted of eight columns, six sections of stairs and the 17.9 metre-long-bridge span that weighed 15.5 tonnes.  

The line is due to close again at the end of April (23-30 April) so teams from Network Rail and AmcoGiffen can install two new lifts, making the bridge fully accessible. Local residents and passengers will be able to easily get across the railway once the footbridge opens later in the summer.  

Thomas Edwards, project manager at Network Rail said: “It’s great to see this brand new fully accessible footbridge come together.  

“We know how important it is to make the railway accessible for everyone and we would like to thank local residents and passengers for their understanding of the need to close the railway to make it happen.”  

Matthew Richards, project manager at AmcoGiffen, added: “Despite some horrendous wet weather, we were lucky with the wind as the gusts weren’t too strong and were able to complete the lift in good time.  

“It’s very pleasing to see the bridge installation take place. This is a combined effort, and we would like to thank all involved for the hard work put in over the past few months to get us to this point.”