WORK to construct a new bridge over the railway at Nithsdale Road in Glasgow’s southside is underway following the demolition of the previous crossing.
The Network Rail project forms part of the Glasgow-Barrhead electrification works, with the new bridge deck being constructed at a higher height to enable overhead electrification wires to run safely beneath the structure.
BAM Nuttall is leading the project, with the railway being closed for 53 hours as the firm worked over two successive weekends to demolish and clear the old bridge before craning the first elements of the new crossing into place.
Over the first weekend, 1,100 tonnes of spoil – including seven wrought iron girders – were removed from the railway bridge using a 500-tonne crane. The masonry brick work from the structure will be recycled and reused as cladding.
Works on the second weekend involved four concrete pre-cast cil units being craned into position on the abutments of the former structure using a 750-tonne crane. These provide the additional height clearance needed for the electrification wires to run safely under what will also be a thinner bridge deck.
Allan Wilson, Network Rail’s project manager for the Glasgow-Barrhead electrification, said, “Successful demolition of the Nithsdale Road bridge removes a key blocker to the installation of the overhead wires that will enable the electrification of the line to Barrhead by December 2023.
“Closing the railway for consecutive weekends was the most efficient way to remove the structure and then to make good progress in the first stages of the construction of the new bridge by installing cil units on the abutments and the pre-cast beams which will form the framework of the new bridge deck.
“We will have the new deck in place in September and then will begin the process of reconnecting the utilities across the structure with a view to having completed the work and opening the new bridge in January next year.
“We are grateful to the local community and road users for their patience and cooperation during this work.”
