BAM, Morgan Sindall start UK’s €112 million Oldbury viaduct job

A joint venture of BAM, Morgan Sindall and VolkerFitzpatrick has started refurbishing the Oldbury viaduct on the UK’s M5 motorway. The €112 million project will see repairs to a 3.5km stretch between junctions 1 and 2 of the motorway – one of the UK’s busiest routes – to the west of Birmingham city. Work is being done in three phases starting with the removal of the road surface on the southbound carriageway to investigate the condition of the concrete deck.
July 31, 2017 Read time: 2 mins
M5 junctions 1 and 2 in need of repair and waterproofing

A joint venture of 7456 BAM, 2567 Morgan Sindall and 2849 VolkerFitzpatrick has started refurbishing the Oldbury viaduct on the UK’s M5 motorway.

The €112 million project will see repairs to a 3.5km stretch between junctions 1 and 2 of the motorway – one of the UK’s busiest routes – to the west of Birmingham city.

Work is being done in three phases starting with the removal of the road surface on the southbound carriageway to investigate the condition of the concrete deck.

Damaged concrete will be repaired and a new waterproofing layer added prior to resurfacing. The process will then be repeated on the northbound carriageway, said Matt Atkinson, project director for the joint venture.

Various sections of the M5 through the West Midlands are elevated – viaducts – that were made of concrete in the late 1960’s. The Oldbury viaduct carries 120,000 vehicles a day, according to 8100 Highways England, the government agency responsible for major roads in England.

“This scheme is the largest concrete repair project ever undertaken in the UK,” the agency said. “To carry out concrete repair and joint replacement works safely, we will need to scaffold under most of the 2.9km long, 30m wide viaduct. All of our scaffolding will then be encapsulated in polythene to prevent the escape of water, dust and debris.”

Road Structures

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Crack infill system ideal reinstatement solution
    February 17, 2012
    Overnight repair work on a major English motorway has avoided the major traffic disruption and significantly increased road surfacing costs that would have occurred if left untreated.
    Read More
  • Island Roads is on the march along the UK’s Isle of Wight
    November 21, 2018
    Ringway Island Roads recently completed a major 12km upgrade to one of the UK’s most iconic roads. The upgrade to the Military Road, on the Isle of Wight in the English channel, is the largest carriageway improvement project delivered in a single scheme by Ringways’ Island Roads division. The project was part of the Isle of Wight’s Highway Improvement Programme which is financed in the main through a grant of €535 million awarded by the UK’s Department for Transport. The section between the villages
    Read More
  • Major Necaxa-Tihuatlan Highway project for Mexico
    October 1, 2014
    A new highway in Mexico is connecting Necaxa with Tihuatlan and the project features challenging terrain - Mauro Nogarin reports In Mexico a landmark highway project is now close to completion, having set a number of records for Latin America.
    Read More
  • Speeding repairs of concrete motorway
    April 2, 2014
    A novel technique is now being introduced in the UK that can help cut construction costs, as well as the time needed for road repairs. Connect Plus, the company that finances, operates and upgrades the 400km M25 network on behalf of the UK’s Highways Agency, has pioneered an innovative method for the replacement of life-expired concrete motorway The introduction of this method is helping reduce the delays experienced by drivers by as much as 80% in the sections of road where it is now being implemented.
    Read More

Highlighted Content