Thursday 4 Aug 2005
VITAL RAILWAY BRIDGE WORK SET TO BEGIN AT THAME ROAD, KINGSEY
- Region & Route:
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Wales & Western: Western
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Wales & Western
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Southern
The 100-year-old Thame Road Bridge spanning the railway in Kingsey, Buckinghamshire, is to undergo extensive strengthening work which is essential to bring it up to modern standards.
The £720,000 project will start next week following two years of planning and investigative work, funded by Network Rail in partnership with Buckinghamshire County Council.
Peter Strachan, 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. This major investment will ensure the long-term future of Thame Road bridge for both road and rail users. I would like to thank anyone affected for their patience while this essential work is carried out.”
The bridge will be closed to road traffic for approximately two and a half months to allow engineers to undertake the mammoth task of repairing and strengthening the iron structure and brickwork base of the bridge to meet European standards. Diversionary routes will be in place throughout the work and will be clearly signposted.
Andrew Robson, Team Leader (bridges) at Buckinghamshire County Council, said: “It’s good to see this work is being carried out in a way that will minimise disruption. We are aware of some local events in the area over that period and have made a point of letting people know what is happening so they can adjust travel arrangements accordingly.”
Most of the core work to upgrade the bridge will be limited to weekend nights to minimise disruption to rail services. The existing road surface and concrete deck will be removed, allowing the project team access to strengthen the wrought iron supporting structures under the bridge. Extensive work will also be carried out to repair its brick structure.
Network Rail has been in close contact with local residents to provide details and consultation on the forthcoming work. Council and emergency services have also been notified of the bridge closure and the diversionary routes in place for road vehicles.
About Network Rail
We own, operate and develop Britain's railway infrastructure; that's 20,000 miles of track, 30,000 bridges, tunnels and viaducts and the thousands of signals, level crossings and stations. We run 20 of the UK's largest stations while all the others, over 2,500, are run by the country's train operating companies.
Usually, there are almost five million journeys made in the UK and over 600 freight trains run on the network. People depend on Britain's railway for their daily commute, to visit friends and loved ones and to get them home safe every day. Our role is to deliver a safe and reliable railway, so we carefully manage and deliver thousands of projects every year that form part of the multi-billion pound Railway Upgrade Plan, to grow and expand the nation's railway network to respond to the tremendous growth and demand the railway has experienced - a doubling of passenger journeys over the past 20 years.
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