8/2/2010 - Work begins on new Workington bridge

Construction work is beginning on a new temporary road bridge that will allow drivers to cross the River Derwent in Workington for the first time since the November floods destroyed or damaged the town's road and foot bridges.

Cumbria County Council has today named Rugby-based engineering firm Morgan Est as the contractor to build the new bridge. Work on site is beginning almost immediately, with the contractor's temporary offices arriving on site and ground excavations for the bridge's foundations starting within days.

The 'hit the ground running' approach has been a consistent feature in a project which has been in development since the day after the floods hit and destroyed Northside bridge and caused huge damage to Workington (Calva) bridge.

The construction of the bridge will be paid for with up to £4.6 million of funding provided by the Department for Transport, which was also confirmed today. Emergency capital highway maintenance funding from the Department for Transport will also pay for one of the two permanent road bridges in the town to be built over the next two years (the other will be paid for through insurance). The Department for Transport are also working with Cumbria to identify and cost damage to the county’s roads which would qualify for further funding under the Department’s emergency capital highway maintenance funding. Cumbria County Council is already planning to set aside an extra £12.2m in next year's budget to help foot the bill for the damage to bridges, roads, footpaths and other county council-owned assets including the Port of Workington and Cockermouth library caused by the floods and recent freeze.

The signing of the contract for Morgan Est to build the new two-lane, 350-tonne bridge is a key milestone in a project identified as the main priority for Cumbria right from the outset of the flood recovery operation. The 67-metre long, 12-metre wide Janson bridge can now be shipped from Holland and parts of the UK to be assembled on the site.

It is envisaged that the new bridge will be open to traffic, including HGVs, by May 28th. Pedestrians and cyclists will also be able to use the bridge, which is situated around 200 metres east of the former Northside Bridge.

The first phase of work is to dig the foundations for the bridge and drive down the steel abutment piles which will house the concrete foundations. An estimated 500 tonnes of concrete will be needed for the project, with a further 900 tonnes of tarmac needed for the bridge surface and approach roads.

Around 35 workers will be on the site building the bridge and approach roads seven days a week, with plans to work 24 hours a day at key points in the project so that it can be constructed in the shortest possible time. Local people will be kept fully informed about the work programme so that disruption can be kept to a minimum and people are aware of the various key stages of the project. A community meeting held in Northside has already indicated strong local support for round-the-clock working where feasible to get the bridge built quickly.

Different elements to the project will be running concurrently to shorten the work programme, so the bridge and its foundations will be built at the same time as the approach roads. The bridge itself will be assembled on the site and then pushed over the river until it slots into the pre-prepared foundations on the other side. 

The duration of the project has already been shortened by the county council working with consultants Capita Symonds to design the bridge and commission vital borehole and investigative ground excavation work before the contract was signed.

Transport Minister Sadiq Khan MP said:

"Today’s announcement is great news for the people of Workington. The construction of this bridge will be a vital step in reuniting the town and will make life easier for local residents and businesses alike. I am also delighted to be able to announce that the Government will be giving Cumbria £4.6 million to cover the material and construction costs of this bridge. 

"The Government is committed to helping the people of Cumbria recover from the devastation caused by last year’s flooding and has already funded the Barker Crossing as well as providing additional rail services to provide vital links across the river at Workington. We have also supported Cumbria County Council in prioritising their recovery programme by paying for the cost of supplementary short-term project management resources. We will continue to work with the council to identify what further funding is required to restore the area’s critical infrastructure."

Cllr Jim Buchanan, Leader of Cumbria County Council, said:

"We have been working on this project since the floods first hit - planning the best place to put the bridge, drawing up potential designs, surveying the geography of the area, working up traffic management plans and going through the tendering and procurement process. So today is a key day in that we have a contractor confirmed to do the work. In the meantime, we have also been working on plans for two permanent replacement road bridges in Workington, which we're aiming to deliver within the next two years, as well as our plans to repair or replace the other damaged bridges in Allerdale and South Lakeland. The temporary Workington bridge is a vital part of the jigsaw we're building to restore the transport infrastructure in west Cumbria." 

Cllr Stewart Young, Deputy Leader of Cumbria County Council, said:

"It's going to be a huge relief for the people of Workington and those who travel through west Cumbria to see construction starting on the bridge. One of the main reasons we chose Morgan Est above the other contractors is that they have planned the project so a lot of the construction activity is happening simultaneously, meaning they were the fastest of all the bidders and the period of disruption for local people is kept to a minimum."

Jag Paddam, Morgan Est’s Managing Director for Infrastructure Services, said:

"Over the next few months a team of up to 35 operatives will be working to construct a bridge which will make a huge difference to the community and help to alleviate the lengthy delays currently experienced by motorists. We also have two local operatives from Workington who are part of the experienced, enthusiastic and committed team which has been assembled to carry out the work. We will work closely with Cumbria County Council to ensure the community is kept informed of the works and that the bridge is completed on time."

Allerdale Borough Council is also playing an important role in the project as it owns the land on the north side of the river where the bridge and approach roads are being built. Cllr Tim Heslop, Leader of Allerdale Borough Council, said:

"We are delighted to offer any help we can to get the bridge up and reconnecting communities north and south of the river. This bridge is going to make life a lot easier for families, friends, workers and businesses –in fact anyone who has struggled to go about their daily routine since the devastating effects of the floods. We shall continue to support Cumbria County Council in its tremendous efforts to ensure the temporary road bridge is opened as quickly as is humanly possible."