Footbridge to Telford Station lifted into place

Europe’s largest mobile crane was needed to lift the 250t main span of the Telford Central Footbridge into place during a night time Network Rail clearance period.

The new bridge consists of two spans, one 40m-long section which crosses the railway line at Telford station and a larger main span of 92m, which crosses the A442 Queensway inner ring road and the A5 Rampart Way.

Both spans feature a tubular steel arch from which the deck is supported. The enclosed structures both feature glazing on each side and a tensile fabric roof covering the primary truss.

Councillor Lee Carter, Cabinet Member with special responsibility for finance, commercial services and economic development, said: “This is one of the biggest engineering projects that we’ve been involved in for a couple of decades, it’s a massive project.

“It’s upgrading our infrastructure to make sure that we’re equipped for the growth of the future.

“It’s Telford’s 50th year and the tradition of bridge building continues, which is nice and symbolic for us as a town.”

Working on behalf of main contractor Balfour Beatty, S H Structures fabricated and supplied the steelwork for the project.