New bridge to Stratford retail development

A fully glazed steel footbridge was lowered into place across railway lines in east London to allow train passengers arriving at Stratford International station to access a nearby retail development.

The 105t footbridge was manufactured by steelwork contractor Briton Fabricators on behalf of design and build contractor Fitzpatrick and client High Speed 1, which owns and manages the Continental rail link.

The railway sits 12m below ground level in a man made cutting referred to as the ‘Stratford Box’. One end of the bridge was lowered onto a fixed bearing attached to a new structural steel column, built from the station’s platform to serve a new lift shaft, escalator arrangement and stairs. The other end was placed on a slide bearing, supported by a capping beam which sits on a contiguous piled retaining wall that forms one side of the ‘Stratford Box’.

The pedestrian bridge features a pair of fabricated rectangular steel sections, that measure 1m deep by 360mm wide, which run the full length of the bridge. The steel sections support a rectangular hollow framed superstructure – forming a truss – which in turn supports the roof and glazing units on either side.

Glazing had been installed on the superstructure prior to the bridge lift to reduce time spent on site.