THE new Bawbee Bridge in Leven has officially opened to traffic earlier than had initially been planned.
A temporary bridge was installed in March to allow for the demolition of the previous Bawbee Bridge, with it carrying around 18,000 vehicles per day.
The previous crossing was weight restricted and at the end of its lifespan, with Fife Council funding the replacement project which was delivered by Network Rail as part of the wider Levenmouth rail link project – with the A955 bridge sitting above the site of the new Leven railway station.
Construction of the new bridge involved 16 18m-long reinforced concrete beams and 18 precast concrete parapets – each weighing 7.5 tonnes and craned into place. In addition, 770 cubic metres of concrete was also poured as part of work to create the bridge. In total, 7,000 tonnes of stone and 100 tonnes of steel reinforced was used. Sandstone from the original crossing has also been used on the new bridge to create the internal facings.
Sean Clemie, project manager for the bridge works, said, “It’s fantastic to see the new Bawbee bridge open and to see vehicles cross the new structure. Bridge demolitions in themselves are often straight forward enough, but most carry numerous utilities over railways and rivers. The challenge is to deliver a programme to have services diverted to a temporary structure and then reconnected over the permanent structure. This is what takes the time.
“Getting this structure over the line is a huge milestone and it allows us to progress with the station carpark and to aim to get everything ready for the opening of the new rail link next year.”
Councillor Colin Davidson, of Fife Council’s Levenmouth area committee, added, “I am delighted to see the Bawbee Bridge open to traffic and especially delighted that the contractors were able to really push ahead and open it ahead of schedule. The new bridge is looking fantastic, and I’m pleased to see we have kept some of the original bridge in there with the internal stonework.
“This is a significant improvement to our local road network and I want to thank the local residents and business community for all their patience. It has been a challenging and complex project, but one which will undoubtably benefit the area going forward.”
