Ravenscraig

Project Updates

• Contract awarded for rail crossing at Ravenscraig

  Time: 0.00 | Date: 04-02-22

  North Lanarkshire Council has agreed a £16.9 million agreement with Network Rail for a new bridge crossing the West Coast Main Line as part of work to upgrade the road connections between Motherwell and Ravenscraig.

  
  

  A new dual carriageway will be built from a new signalised roundabout at Airbles Road/Windmillhill Street to Robberhall Road at the Ravenscraig Regional Sports Facility. The bridge will be constructed to lift the railway line over the new road.

  Network Rail and their appointed contractor Story Contracting will manage the construction of the bridge on behalf of the council.

  Final design work on the project will start next month, with the bridge being constructed over the coming year. It will then be moved into position and installed in spring 2023 during a line closure and the rail tracks reinstated.

  “The bridge is a key component of our plans to improve access to the Ravenscraig site and open up more opportunities for investment and development,” said Councillor Paul Kelly, Council Depute Leader.

  “It will be a major piece of engineering to construct and install the bridge, lifting the West Coast Main Line to accommodate the structure, so we are working in partnership with Network Rail to deliver the project.

  “The bridge and the new road beneath will improve traffic flow to and from Ravenscraig now and in future as more homes, business, retail and leisure facilities are built on this important site, supporting the local economy across North Lanarkshire.”

  Jeremy Spence, Network Rail programme manager for the proposed bridge work, said: “Network Rail has worked closely with North Lanarkshire Council throughout the development stage for the bridge work.

  “When the new structure is moved into place next year, it will be undertaken alongside other essential activities in order to help minimise any disruption caused to rail customers and the local community.”

  “The bridge is part of a wider proposal by the Council in further regenerating Ravenscraig and will help create new active travel routes, something Network Rail is fully supportive of and pleased to be able to play a part in helping to deliver.”

  As part of the contract, Story Contracting will provide a range of community benefits including eight full-time jobs for local people, four apprenticeships and an education with local schools, including work experience opportunities.

  The dual carriageway and railway crossing is the first part of the £127.2 million Ravenscraig Access Infrastructure (RAI) project, which is being funded by the council and Glasgow City Region City Deal. In addition to creating new connections to Motherwell, the wider RAI project will improve connections from Ravenscraig north to the M8 and south to the M74 and is part of plans to regenerate the former steelworks site.

  More information is available at www.northlanarkshire.gov.uk/ravenscraig-south-citydeal

• Graham Simpson MSP visits Ravenscraig bridge work

  Time: 0.00 | Date: 04-10-22

  Network Rail welcomed Central Scotland MSP, Graham Simpson to the site of a new bridge that will be installed under the West Coast Main Line at Motherwell to hear first-hand about progress on the work to date.

  
  

  

  MSP for Central Scotland, Graham Simpson said: "The Ravenscraig underbridge being constructed by Network Rail and Story Contracting is hugely impressive.

  "Network Rail and Story together are doing some great civil engineering work throughout Scotland.

  "I was very impressed with their programme of taking on student apprentices, giving them a job while putting them through university. That has to be
  Header the way forward for a lot of companies."
  
  

  

  Mark Wilson, Network Rail project manager, said: “We are delighted to welcome Mr Simpson to site and provide an opportunity to see the progress the team has made through the initial stages of the work.

  “This is a significant piece of engineering given the sheer size and scale of the bridge, and with the abutments now complete, the structure is really beginning to take shape.

  “Once the bridge is installed under the railway next year, it will be fundamental to help the Council achieve its wider regeneration plans for the former industrial site at Ravenscraig.”

• Ravenscraig rail crossing project update

  Time: 0.00 | Date: 01-12-22

  Work is progressing on a new crossing of the West Coast Main Line at Motherwell, which will be the largest concrete bridge structure to be transported into position in the UK.

  

  Depute Leader Councillor Paul Kelly visited the site to see the work being carried out by Network Rail and Story Contracting.

  “The new road will help us open up more opportunities for investment and regeneration at Ravenscraig, and the rail crossing is a key element in achieving our ambitions for the site,” Councillor Kelly said.

  “We can clearly see the bridge now taking shape, along with the wingwalls, which will be moved into position next spring.

  

  “Taking the railway line over the road, rather than through a tunnel, reduces the impact on the area and allows better routes for footways and cycle paths which will run alongside the road and link to active travel routes across Ravenscraig.”

  Jeremy Spence, Network Rail programme manager for the bridge work, said: “Having recently achieved an important milestone with the first concrete pours to the new bridge deck, we are delighted to welcome Depute Leader Paul Kelly to site today to see progress overall since construction work started in May.

  “The bridge is being built offline in a huge compound next to the railway but given the sheer scale and size of the structure, it’s becoming increasingly visible from several vantage points in the surrounding area.

  “Our focus over the coming months is to have the bridge ready to move into position next spring as part of the West Coat Mainline, when it is self-propelled into place by using modular transporters. This will mark a momentous achievement on a collaborative project that plays its part in helping North Lanarkshire Council deliver its ambitious and exciting plans to further regenerate the wider area.”
  
  

  

  As part of the bridge contract, the project is providing a range of community benefits including eight full-time jobs for local people, four apprenticeships and an education with local schools, including work experience opportunities.

  One of the apprentices is Eoghainn MacPhee, a Trainee Engineer: “I started my Graduate Apprenticeship in Civil Engineering with Story Contracting back in May, gaining experience working on site at Ravenscraig whilst studying for my degree at University of Strathclyde. It’s a great team we’ve got working on the project and I’ve learnt a lot so far which has greatly aided my development.”

  More information is available at www.northlanarkshire.gov.uk/ravenscraig-citydeal.

• Ravenscraig project features in construction magazine

  Time: 0.00 | Date: 04-01-23

  We were delighted to be invited to contribute to Construction Wave's article and provide exclusive insight into the Ravenscraig project.

  

  Mark Wilson (Network Rail) and David Hamilton (Story), Project Managers for the venture caught up with Construction Wave to shed some light on the technology, processes (on and offline), logistics, innovation and delivery team behind the project – and importantly, the benefits of this approach.

  SPRING 2023 EXCLUSIVE: Moving the ‘UK’s largest concrete bridge’ - Construction Wave