In one of the biggest civil engineering projects that the Keighley and Worth Valley Railway has undertaken, one of the spans of Bridge 27 is to be replaced.
Planning and design of the bridge's renewal are well underway, with a target date of September 2024 for the main renewal to take place, when the railway will be closed for three weeks – although preliminary works will be starting soon.
The complexity, scale and costs to renew Bridge 27 will far exceed those incurred during the renewal of Bridge 11 in 2020. However, although sub-contractors will be used for much of the work, the railway will also be using its own qualified team of volunteers.
The current bridge was built in 1889 and replaced an earlier bridge built in 1867. It comprises two separate structures that share the same abutments and pier and carries the railway over Bridgehouse Beck. The upstream structure carries the line into Haworth Yard and is not being renewed. It is the downstream structure that needs renewal because of the condition of the abutments, supporting pier, and iron girders.
As the existing abutments and piers are in poor condition, a lot of work is required in and around the river, which means construction will take longer but also comes with risks because of environmental restrictions and flood risk as work cannot take place in times of increased river flow. There are also restrictions to protect wildlife that prevents work for much of the year.
Whilst the bridge is being replaced, Haworth Yard will be isolated from the rest of the railway, so the closure of the line must be kept to a minimum.
The current proposal will see the existing bridge replaced by a larger steel structure that sits on piles that will be installed behind the existing bridge abutments. A 500-ton crane, the largest crane to have been used on the railway, will lift the new bridge deck into place onto a cap on top of five piles approximately 600mm in diameter and 16m deep. Current planning is for the piles to be installed from 13th May next year. Once the piles have been sunk the track will be reinstated so that the railway can run normal services next summer, except from a 10 mph speed limit over the bridge.
The main part of the work will start on Monday, 2nd September 2024 when the existing bridge will be removed with the help of a 50-ton steam crane belonging to The Bahamas Locomotive Society, as happened with Bridge 11. This allows all demolition work to take place without the use of outside contractors.
Once the bridge has been demolished the piles will be exposed, after which an external contractor will construct the pile caps. After the pile caps have completely set, the bridge bearings will be installed followed by lifting the bridge deck into position.
