Grantham relief road bridge now fully in place
The final piece of the bridge's launch nose is due to be removed this week
A 2,500 tonne bridge for the new Grantham Southern Relief Road is now fully in place over the River Witham and the East Coast Main Line.
The operation to move the bridge into position started in March.
Lincolnshire County Council said it required careful precision to ensure the bridge stayed on the correct trajectory and was perfectly aligned.
Work to remove the final piece of the bridge's launch nose is due to take place this week.
Launch nose removal
The 49-metre steel launch nose was used to move the bridge across the gap between its supporting piers.
The council said the nose helped control how much the structure flexed as it was pushed forward, while its strengthened design helped keep the bridge aligned.
It weighs around 130 tonnes and is being dismantled in sections using a 500-tonne-capacity mobile crane.
A team of 10 people is unbolting each section before it is lifted to the ground.
All of the steel will be recycled.
Cllr David East, executive member for highways at Lincolnshire County Council, said: "Getting this bridge across the River Witham and the East Coast Main Line has been an incredible engineering achievement, requiring careful planning, specialist expertise and a huge amount of teamwork."
What happens next
The team will now work on permanently connecting the new structure to its piers.
The council said these connections will secure the bridge to its permanent supports, allowing work to progress on completing the structure and preparing it to carry the new road.
The focus will then move to building the rest of the bridge on the east side of the site.
That will include lifting new steel beams into place, concreting the decks, installing safety barriers and laying road surfacing.
Major embankment works will also be carried out on the western lead-up to the bridge.
Cllr East said: "There is still a lot of work to do before the relief road is opened, but each milestone brings us closer to delivering a new route that will help reduce congestion, improve journey reliability and support Grantham's future growth."
About the relief road
The bridge is a key part of the 3.5km Grantham Southern Relief Road, which will provide a new route around the town.
The council said the road is intended to ease congestion and delays, improve access to new homes and businesses, and reduce traffic passing through the town centre.
It said the project will also unlock land for future development.
The council added that fewer vehicles travelling through central Grantham would contribute to lower noise levels and reduced vehicle emissions.
The latest updates on the project are available at www.lincolnshire.gov.uk/gsrr .