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HS2 Colne Valley Viaduct construction updates

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cuemaster

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There is some activity next to Moorhall Road which was due to be closed from 22 July to 29 August but currently remains open. So they're installing segments here without the need for the launching girder 'Dominique', as they did down earlier in the viaduct. I assume they will close the road at some point to join up the section between the 2 piers. I can only think they're doing this work here to ensure the road is kept closed for the minimum amount of time. Its all a bit exciting to see the progress being made.

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LNW-GW Joint

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It looks like the larger bridge panel is on the north side of Moorhall Road, with its northern pier on the edge of Broadwater Lake (with V-shaped piers beyond).
The smaller bridge panel on the south side is at the start of about 50m or so of solid ground before the water sections restart over Savay Lake.
It's certainly a very complicated route section.
Fitting the panel which closes the gap between the two over the road in the photo will be interesting!
 
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vic-rijrode

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This is all bittersweet for me. Great to see the viaduct going up, but as someone who used to drive along the A412 every day to work, but who now lives nearly 300 miles away, I would love to see the daily progress of these great constructions. I also lived in a couple of locations a few miles away from the Buckinghamshire, Northamptonshire, Warwickshire and Oxfordshire works. The most I can look forward to seeing these days is the opening of the new Sunderland station and the new Tyne & Wear Metro units running...
 
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Snow1964

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cuemaster said:
There is some activity next to Moorhall Road which was due to be closed from 22 July to 29 August but currently remains open. So they're installing segments here without the need for the launching girder 'Dominique', as they did down earlier in the viaduct. I assume they will close the road at some point to join up the section between the 2 piers. I can only think they're doing this work here to ensure the road is kept closed for the minimum amount of time. Its all a bit exciting to see the progress being made.
Click to expand...

Seems Moorhall Road was closed during August school holidays because of lower traffic. The span is now linked and will be concreted and tensioned so the temporary piers can be removed. When Dominique reaches it will just move straight over. All explained in new video on link

www.railadvent.co.uk

HS2 completes Colne Valley Viaduct span during three-week road closure

HS2 engineers have completed a forty-metre span that will form part of the high-speed rail project’s Colne Valley Viaduct on the outskirts of London.
www.railadvent.co.uk www.railadvent.co.uk
 
BRX

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Can anyone advise whether there are any good locations to look at the viaduct construction just now?

Would be getting there using public transport but quite capable of walking several miles from a station/bus stop, especially if the walk were a nice one in itself?
 
C

cuemaster

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Work progresses at the first lake Korda....and interesting to see the construction detail at the base of the v-piers and how things will look once the cofferdams are removed. The v-piers at the beginning and end of the lakes have had the intermediate segments installed, the v-pier near Moorhall road making use of the crane that was used to construct the bridge over the public road...i would think the plan is for the launching girder to pass over the road speedily so the road does not have to be closed again.
 

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S

swt_passenger

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cuemaster said:
Work progresses at the first lake Korda....and interesting to see the construction detail at the base of the v-piers and how things will look once the cofferdams are removed. The v-piers at the beginning and end of the lakes have had the intermediate segments installed, the v-pier near Moorhall road making use of the crane that was used to construct the bridge over the public road...i would think the plan is for the launching girder to pass over the road speedily so the road does not have to be closed again.
Click to expand...
In the fourth photo, I wonder if the small piers either side of the central one are only temporary until the viaduct sections are fully joined. If they were required to be permanent, would they be more likely to have match the design/shape of the single central pier?
 
BRX

BRX

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swt_passenger said:
In the fourth photo, I wonder if the small piers either side of the central one are only temporary until the viaduct sections are fully joined. If they were required to be permanent, would they be more likely to have match the design/shape of the single central pier?
Click to expand...
It seems unlikely they'd have encased them in fair-faced concrete if they were only temporary.
 
DelW

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swt_passenger said:
In the fourth photo, I wonder if the small piers either side of the central one are only temporary until the viaduct sections are fully joined. If they were required to be permanent, would they be more likely to have match the design/shape of the single central pier?
Click to expand...

BRX said:
It seems unlikely they'd have encased them in fair-faced concrete if they were only temporary.
Click to expand...
This is purely speculation on my part, but possibly they have a double function.

During construction, they accommodate jacks to stabilise the deck longitudinally until the spans are fully connected.

In the permanent condition, they can accommodate jacks to allow the deck to be supported while the bearings are repaired or replaced. Experience on road bridges is that premature bearing failure is very costly to repair if major temporary works are required to allow the decks to be jacked up. More recent bridge designs usually have much more spacious bearing shelves to allow jacks to be inserted between abutment and deck soffit.
 
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Flying Phil

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Thanks for those pictures -there will be some stunning images from that site as the work is finished and trains start to cross.
 
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wildcard

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BRX said:
Can anyone advise whether there are any good locations to look at the viaduct construction just now?

Would be getting there using public transport but quite capable of walking several miles from a station/bus stop, especially if the walk were a nice one in itself?
Click to expand...

The nearest station is Denham . The Moorhall Road works are a short walk away . Or take TfL 331 either from Uxbridge station or Denham station - its route goes underneath the viaduct . A little further along the road crosses the Grand Union canal -so you could try the towpath both north and south . You may catch a glimpse westwards across the lake but northwards it is quite wooded so may be obscured. Or just before the canal you may be able to take the road left down to Broadwater Sailing Club. On the western side of the lake, the 724 Arriva bus north from Uxbridge travels the A412 North Orbital Road and goes underneath the viaduct . It's limited stop so you would have to walk back from Maple Cross but could take a left to find your way to Black Jacks lock on the canal . Lastly instead of the bus walk up the A412 from Denham station past the old film studios / business parks - the viaduct runs parallel to the road behind the trees on the right . Further on the road to the waterski club may give you access. Another option is to take the canal towpath all the way from Uxbridge.
 
Last edited:
kevin_roche

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It is an awsome construction. I was diverted (by google maps) off the M25 on Sunday evening and drove under the viaduct a little further along so saw it IRL for the first time. :)
 
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Signal_Box

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It’ll make a wonderful cycle track if HS2 is cancelled completely, all those tunnels turned into bat homes as well - HS2 the greenest railway in the world.
 
C

cuemaster

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Took advantage of the decent weather on Saturday 11th...a few pics of the viaduct at Moorhall Road in between Denham Green and South Harefield, some clear views of the 4 v-piers accross Korda lake. The launching girder has completed 50% of the viaduct and will continue south across Savay lake towards the grand union canal and will soon be moving on to the next pier. Will be great to see trains running through here 2029-2033!

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DelW

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Episode 2 of "Tony Robinson's Marvellous Machines" broadcast on Yesterday channel last evening (14/11) had a couple of relevant sections, one covering the Colne Valley viaduct and the placing gantry, the other covering the nearby factory producing the viaduct segments.
 
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Basil Jet

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At the beginning of the first of those two videos, you can see a large number of skip-shaped objects on the largely finished viaduct, one over each pier. What are they?
 
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TBY-Paul

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Basil Jet said:
At the beginning of the first of those two videos, you can see a large number of skip-shaped objects on the largely finished viaduct, one over each pier. What are they?
Click to expand...
I assume your referring to the bridge sections that are stored on the completed viaduct, in preparation, for installation of the next section.
 
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