Workers from Graham Group successfully installed a new pedestrian and cycle bridge at the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park on Christmas Day.
The 66m-long, 7.2m-wide Carpenters Land bridge, weighing 350t, links East Bank, the new £1.1bn culture and education district on the Olympic Park, with the new International Quarter London business district.
Graham took advantage of the rail network’s Christmas shutdown to rotate the bridge into position over three Network Rail lines, two DLR lines and Carpenters Road.
It used self-propelled modular transporters rather than a crane to reduce the risk of cancellation due to potential high winds.
The bridge was transported on the transporters along Carpenters Road in a jacked-up position about 8m off the ground. It was supported on the transports in a cantilever arrangement with a large counterweight of 450t to balance the bridge during installation. It was finally rotated into position across the road and rail lines and lowered into position on top of a cill beam and portal frame at either end of the bridge.
Rosanna Lawes, executive director of development at London Legacy Development Corporation, said: “Our thanks go to all the hard-working construction staff who have made fantastic progress, especially those from Graham and their contractors who were hard at work over the Christmas holidays to deliver this fantastic new bridge.”
The bridge is scheduled for completion in spring this year.
