Skip to main content

Cofferdams completed for Sunderland city’s New Wear River Crossing

In the UK, foundation work for Sunderland city’s new bridge is about to start as the huge cofferdam in the middle of the River Wear nears completion. Water has been drained out of the cofferdam, a large steel watertight structure within the river, to allow the building of pylons for the bridge deck. It is the first bridge to be built over the Wear in Sunderland for more than 40 years and is part of the wider strategic transport plan to link the Port of Sunderland and city centre with the A19 road.
May 25, 2016 Read time: 2 mins
Cofferdam construction to allow work on main pylon foundations
In the UK, foundation work for Sunderland city’s new bridge is about to start as the huge cofferdam in the middle of the River Wear nears completion.

Water has been drained out of the cofferdam, a large steel watertight structure within the river, to allow the building of pylons for the bridge deck.

It is the first bridge to be built over the Wear in Sunderland for more than 40 years and is part of the wider strategic transport plan to link the Port of Sunderland and city centre with the A19 road.

Before the end of the year, a 105m A-frame pylon will be floated from Belgium on a giant barge before being slowly hoisted into position on the river. It will take several hours to raise the pylon and secure it.

Stephen McCaffrey, project director for FVB joint venture, created by 1622 Farrans Construction and Victor Buyck Steel Construction, said the positioning of the pylon will be “a very complex project” and “not straightforward”.

Farrans Construction is a building and civil engineering contractor across the UK and Ireland. Victor Buyck is based in Belgium and specialises in major structural steelwork, especially steel bridges. The FVB joint venture is supported by their design team led by Buro Happold Engineering and Roughan & O'Donovan.

Sunderland City Council is holding a two-phase consultation to find a name for the new bridge.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Norway’s massive Rogfast Tunnel project
    December 11, 2018
    The world's longest and deepest road tunnel is underway in western Norway - Adrian Greeman reports
  • Italy's strategic tunnel link
    August 21, 2012
    The world's largest tunnelling machine is completing Italy's important road connection between Bologna and Florence - Adrian Greeman reports For just under a decade a huge programme of highway construction has been underway in the mountainous region between Bologna and Florence, realigning a section of the A1 highway nearly 70km long. The new section, through major tunnels and across high viaducts, will greatly increase capacity on Italy's most important highway.
  • UK: Work starts on Mersey Gateway main bridge deck
    June 2, 2016
    Work has started on 2.2km Mersey Gateway’s main bridge deck as the project enters its third year of construction. The new six-lane toll bridge will link the English towns of Runcorn and Widnes and teams will begin to connect the steel support cables to the deck and upper pylons this summer. Trinity, the project’s movable scaffolding system (MSS), has cast the first 250m of the north approach viaduct and a new MSS is on its way to Halton to build the south approach viaduct. The local road network is al
  • Innovative Ohio River Bridge crossing
    March 31, 2016
    Work is underway on an innovative new bridge link over the Ohio River in the US.