A new railway bridge supporting a four-way roundabout above the West Coast Main Line in Stockport has reopened after a year-long overhaul. Traffic restrictions were lifted on the evening of Friday 27 March at around 8pm.
Network Rail has invested £20 million completely replacing Greek Street bridge to secure both the road above and railway below for the next 120 years.
Last August the former 67-year-old structure was removed and replaced with a new bridge comprised of 51 structural elements – all lifted in by crane during a 21-day railway closure.
Since then work to reinstate the carriageway, buried utilities like drainage, power cables and gas and water mains has taken place.
On the eve of the reopening, local schoolchildren from St Matthew’s and Our Lady’s were given special road safety lessons now the road network will become much busier around their school.
Local business owners impacted by the essential upgrade also had the chance to meet the project team from contractor Murphy and Network Rail.
Patrick Vallely, Network Rail Capital Delivery head of Buildings and Civils, said: “Seeing traffic running smoothly once more at Greek Street is a proud moment for us all who’ve been working on this project for many years.
“Replacing Greek Street bridge was a massive feat of civil engineering which has impacted people right across Stockport for over a year, so I’d like to say a huge thank you to everyone for bearing with us. This essential project now secures the future of this structure and will provide a safe and reliable road and railway network for decades to come.”
Jamie Rothwell, transportation managing director at contractor Murphy, commented: “This project is testament to the expertise and collaboration between the Murphy and Network Rail team, and our supply chain partners, who all worked together to realise this complex and critical upgrade.
“We are grateful for the support received by the local community whilst we have been on site and are pleased to be able to hand back this improved and future-proofed structure which will serve the local community for many years to come.”
As part of the project, a much-admired mosaic which was part of the former bridge was retained and reinstalled on the new structure and was also unveiled yesterday.
The work in Stockport is part of Network Rail’s major investment programme into the West Coast Main Line, which will see £400 million improvements to Europe’s busiest mixed-use passenger and freight railway lines over the next year.
Image credit: Network Rail
