To facilitate access to London Gateway’s newly built deep-sea container port, VolkerFitzpatrick was appointed to design and construct two vital lengths of dual carriageway access, complete with connecting a bridge over the port’s railway line.
The contract involved the design and construction of two new carriageway access roads. The port and logistics park access roads were constructed on previously constructed embankments. We also installed culverts at several locations through the embankments to provide newt crossings and to maintain the flow of existing watercourses.
Junctions onto both access roads were constructed to provide entrance to the port’s new administration building.
A bus lay-by was installed on the logistics park access road and a combined footway and cycleway constructed on the port access road. The two new access roads were connected by a new at-grade interchange.
A new 60m long bridge, constructed in only 16 weeks, carries the access road over the port’s new railway, connecting the southern and northern parts of the port development.
To address poor ground conditions, the bridge was constructed on DCIS piled foundations to achieve the high working load tolerances required in weak subsoil conditions. Due to the bridge span being within 16m of a non-load bearing sea wall, we developed a bespoke bridge embankment solution. This was constructed using lightweight polystyrene fill combined with an 86m long ‘skinny’ facing wall.