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HS2 Progress near Kenilworth

RyanOPlasty

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The Allard Way bridge did include reinstating the railway, albeit with a speed restriction for a few days. The road below too much longer as it was new.

I have seen a few references to a similar scale project in the Netherlands, with the added complication that the box seems to be on a curve. I can only quickly find a facebook link but it clearly shows completion in three days. Facebook Link
 
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swt_passenger

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The Allard Way bridge did include reinstating the railway, albeit with a speed restriction for a few days. The road below too much longer as it was new.

I have seen a few references to a similar scale project in the Netherlands, with the added complication that the box seems to be on a curve. I can only quickly find a facebook link but it clearly shows completion in three days. Facebook Link
I found another video about your example that wasn't so much of a timelapse, and I think it’s fairly clear they only did half the width of the whole road.
 

stuu

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Does anyone know why the A46 bridge is not just a standard box? There doesn't seem any obvious reason for the side spans but there must be an engineering reason for it
 

bib

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A couple of videos showing Burton Green tunnel and the area beyond over the WCML and on to Truggist Lane viaduct, which looks to be fairly substantial
 

swt_passenger

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HS2 is releasing a new video, on Burton Green tunnel (Kenilworth)

Available from 4pm today (9 Jan)
I just noticed that isn’t an official HS2 video, although it’s got HS2 style captions on the preview it’s not one of theirs. I wonder why YouTubers do that…
 

Snow1964

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Dates of the closure Friday 11 April to Thursday 1 May of A46 dual carriageway for the slide of new under bridge have now been published.

The work we are doing
We will be pushing a new box structure to take the HS2 line under the A46 near Kenilworth. Once the box is slid into place, we will complete the remaining works; resurface the carriageway, reinstate the white lines and safety barriers ready to reopen the A46. While we deliver the works there will be increased construction activity, 24/7 operation, overnight lighting and some additional noise. We will minimise the impact on residents as much as possible.

When the work will take place
To ensure the safety of our workforce, we will be closing a section of the A46 from the Stivichall Interchange (Festival Island) to the Thickthorn Island (A452 for Leamington and Kenilworth) for 19 days. We will hold three days as a contingency in case of an unforeseen event


HS2 will bring a number of bridges into use during 2025 along the whole route, allowing existing roads blocking the trackbed to be removed and landscaped
 

Bald Rick

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Dates of the closure Friday 11 April to Thursday 1 May of A46 dual carriageway for the slide of new under bridge have now been published.




HS2 will bring a number of bridges into use during 2025 along the whole route, allowing existing roads blocking the trackbed to be removed and landscaped

This does seem a long closure for a bridge slide of this nature. It is essentially the same as the bridge slide at Radlett over Christmas, and that was done in 6 days (although the railway was closed for longer for other works). Yes this HS2 bridge is bigger, but it is the same methodology: dig big hole, push bridge, back fill, reinstate on top.
 

Bald Rick

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If I was a regular A46 commuter, I‘d want to know why a similar bridge slide using the same technology on the MML over Christmas was dug out and slid in over 3-4 days, whereas this is taking 3 weeks.
 
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OscarH

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If I was a refular A46 commuter, I‘d want to know why a similar bridge slide using the same technology on the MML over Christmas was dug out and slid in over 3-4 days, whereas this is taking 3 weeks.
I was wondering exactly this
 

Adam Williams

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If I was a regular A46 commuter, I‘d want to know why a similar bridge slide using the same technology on the MML over Christmas was dug out and slid in over 3-4 days, whereas this is taking 3 weeks.
Deliberate discrimination against those of us in Warks, clearly /s :D That's why my 50mph road on the way to Leamington was downgraded by HS2 to a 30mph as well!

But no, locally people aren't super impressed. I had to endure a dental check-up a few weeks back in Kenilworth and was discussing it with the staff in there. HS2 did give plenty of notice and it was well advertised, but it's closed for a very long time.

It's not the first major disruption people have had to put up with though, around here.

I was wondering exactly this
You aren't allowed an opinion anymore given you abandoned the area for Sussex :p
 

Snow1964

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New drone video of A46 bridge, concrete abutments appear to have been built, and pair of very large cranes erected either side.

 

stuving

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I've had a look for any relevant explanations of how this bridge slide differs from HS2's others, and there's nothing definitive. It is bigger, and it does have one big design difference, but the fundamental method is the same - Freyssinet's autoripage.

The one major difference is that Radlett and Coventry had vertical flank walls, and the embankment had to be backfilled up to that. Kenilworth has sloping walls, serving as a struts supporting the ends of the deck of the box. Backfilling under that is clearly a more difficult operation, depending on how much support that fill provides for the bridge (which is unclear, at least to me).

There is an HS2 CGI of something similar to the Kenilworth slide (here from Construction Management magazine), though it isn't exactly the same in its details. Assuming the five plates scattered around the crane on each side form the transition from bridge deck to intact roadway, that's what the cranes must be there to lift. Mind you, five plates looks to few to span the full width of the deck.

I also found a "how to" video from Freyssinet about Coventry here, which illustrates the technique and in particular the hidden bits like the cables. Most of the text you read (e.g. HS2's used by most other publications) is a bit misleading in talking about the box being guided by a raft. The box (bridge and floor slab as a rigid unit) is built on a slab, with a sliding joint between them. Then the box is pushed off the end of the slab onto bare earth with a pool of bentonite lubricant on top. At the end of the slide the box is just off the end of the slab, and the jacking rafts are still on it. Freysinnet's video of Radlett is also worth a look.
 

Snow1964

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swt_passenger

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A video update as of 1130 this morning (18th April) shows the slide was complete by then and the cranes installing the ‘transition plates’ that @stuving mentioned in post #105. (Quite a few more than the number visible earlier, by the way.)

It is becoming clear that the 19 day programme must have included massive amounts of contingency.

 
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Adam Williams

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I know "underpromise and overdeliver" is a thing, but I think I would've preferred timescales rooted a bit more in reality..
 

hwl

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A video update as of 1130 this morning (18th April) shows the slide was complete by then and the cranes installing the ‘transition plates’ that @stuving mentioned in post #105. (Quite a few more than the number visible earlier, by the way.)

It is becoming clear that the 19 day programme must have included massive amounts of contingency.

Still plenty to do before reopening though and the key question is how much of the surfacing / crash barriers / landscaping adjacent to the carriage way they potentially planned to do over the Easter weekend or have they just assumed starting that on Tuesday morning with the cranes out of the way and some clean up done over the weekend.
 

Snow1964

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A new drone video of A46 at Stoneleigh and HS2 bridge

Cranes moving the plates to hold the roadway either side of the new bridge have now gone. Work appears to be ongoing to backfill / build up either side of bridge ahead of restoring the road.


== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: ==

< Automerge >

Drone video 24th April
Road looks like it has been surfaced, and work is now on barriers

 
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Snow1964

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New drone video, Road now has white lines, and temporary barriers limiting traffic to 2 lanes each way.

A46 Road looks virtually ready to reopen.


== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: ==

Update 30th April
A46 open

  • The A46 Kenilworth Bypass reopened to traffic at midnight last night – 30 hours ahead of schedule. Download new images showing the road open to traffic this morning.
  • The 18-day closure was to allow HS2 engineers to slide a massive 14,500-tonne box structure into place which will carry high speed trains under the road. View and embed timelapse footage of the slide.
  • In order to avoid two years of lane closures and speed restrictions, the huge concrete box was built in advance on land next to the road and slid into position during a continuous closure provided by National Highways.

 
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Snow1964

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New drone video of HS2 construction including new bridge for B4453 near Cubbington. Once road is diverted to new bridge I assume remaining earthworks can be done, joining the virtually complete cutting either side.

 

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