Skip to main content

A wheely great bridge for the English city of Hull

A 60m pre-constructed pedestrian bridge weighing 150 tonnes as been wheeled into position over the A63 in the northern English city of Hull. The covered and vaulted Princess Quays Bridge will be renamed when it opens in the spring enabling pedestrians and cyclists to cross over the busy dual carriageway. The positioning operation meant that first the route was cleared of signage, guardrails and street lights. The bridge was then lowered onto two wheeled transporters – one at each end of the structur
November 6, 2019 Read time: 2 mins
Driving it home: Hull’s newest pedestrian bridge, above the busy A63, is carefully positioned and eventually lowered onto its foundations
A 60m pre-constructed pedestrian bridge weighing 150 tonnes as been wheeled into position over the A63 in the northern English city of Hull.


The covered and vaulted Princess Quays Bridge will be renamed when it opens in the spring enabling pedestrians and cyclists to cross over the busy dual carriageway.
 
The positioning operation meant that first the route was cleared of signage, guardrails and street lights. The bridge was then lowered onto two wheeled transporters – one at each end of the structure -  and ‘driven’ across Myton Street and along the westbound carriageway of the A63 to the marina.

Finally, the structure required a multiple point turn to position it above the pylons onto which it was lowered and secured.

The bridge is covered by a curving steel canopy and when finished will have sheltered viewing balconies at each end. As part of the bridge construction there will be new landscaped public areas at both the Princes Quay and marina sides.

The 8100 Highways England project, which is the first phase of the A63 Castle Street road improvement scheme, will help link the city’s marina with the southern end of Princes Quay Dock.

“Our team worked exceptionally hard throughout the weekend to move the street furniture, prepare the route and position the bridge by wheeling it to its final destination,” said Tom Peckitt, Highways England project manager. “The team worked throughout the night after the installation to reopen the A63 15 hours ahead of schedule.”

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • California turns towards a Texas solution for u-turn design
    July 24, 2019
    The first so-called Texas U-Turn in the US state of California has opened as part of the Gerald Desmond Bridge Replacement project at Long Beach. The design enables trucks and other vehicles to make a safe and free-flowing U-turn at the west end of the project at the port access undercrossing, a second tunnel near the intersection of Ocean Boulevard and State Route 47 (SR-47) on Terminal Island. The Texas U-turn - named because it is a common feature at intersections in the state of Texas - enables ve
  • Brazil’s Serra do Cafezal Highway
    July 29, 2015
    Brazil's improved Mercosur route will boost capacity and cut travel time - Mauro Nogarin writes. The Régis Bittencourt Highway is one of the main access routes of the Mercosur traffic. It has a length of 400km and connects the main cities of São Paulo and Curitiba, which allows for products to enter from the southeast toward the rest of the southern part of Brazil and later transit to Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay. Products also flow into Brazil from Mercosur through this major highway. The cost of the hi
  • Road user subscriptions will fund the road ecosystems of the future says ERF Lab
    December 14, 2018
    The highway of the future will not be a physical asset created and maintained by the construction industry … it will increasingly be seen as part of an emerging global services sector. “Every day we hear about Mobility as a Service (MaaS), but what about Roads as a Service?” says Christophe Nicodème, general director of the European Union Road Federation (ERF). “The role of the road is changing. We need to think much more carefully about planning (highway) infrastructure in terms of people’s needs. We must
  • Advanced method for South Africa bridge construction
    May 16, 2016
    A sophisticated construction method has been used for the first time in South Africa for a suspended bridge project This novel method of bridge construction was used on a major road upgrade project for the South African National Roads Agency Limited (SANRAL). Main contractor Lonerock Construction, and subcontractor Tzandeboo Construction, used RMD Kwikform’s Megatruss system to construct a 60m-long bridge while suspended mid-air over the live N4 highway. Lonerock Construction’s US$8.5 million (R132