A KEY ROAD into Worcester will be closed for a week to allow a new 1,500 tonne railway bridge extension to be manoeuvred into place.
The works on the Southern Link Road mark another step closer to Worcestershire County Council’s aim to dual the road from the M5 to Powick roundabout in Worcester.
More than 22,000 tonnes of soil will be removed during the works which will be completed using specialist equipment.
Once moved into place, the new bridge will then be fixed to the existing bridge and the area to the south is backfilled to make an embankment.
The new railway track will be replaced and tested – this includes 216 new railway sleepers, four lengths of 112 metre long of track and 1200 tonnes of new ballast.
To allow these works to take place a full road closure between the Norton and Whittington roundabouts in Worcester will be in place from 8pm tomorrow (Thursday) to 6am next Friday, June 1.
The railway line will also be closed from Saturday to next Thursday.
Coun Ken Pollock, cabinet member for Economy and Infrastructure, said “The works already undertaken to build the bridge extension on site, and those taking place during the bridge installation, have required a long period of planning and a huge team effort from all involved.
“The sheer number of organisations needed to make this happen makes this one of the most complex schemes we have completed in the county.
“I’m really excited to see all of the preparation and planning come to life over the next few days.
“Unfortunately, this road closure is needed to complete this big stage of the scheme and I would like to encourage, wherever possible, forward planning by road and footpath users to reduce the impact to journeys.”
