New Greek Street bridge beams installed in just four days

Network Rail has shared new footage of the huge beams being installed across the West Coast Main Line in Stockport to replace the Greek Street bridge.

Network Rail and its contractor Murphy are on track to complete the main phase of the £20 million project in time for the railway line through Stockport to reopen on Saturday 23rd August.

So far during the 21-day suspension of all trains, teams have successfully dismantled and removed 200 beams from the old structure, and lifted and positioned beams for its replacement over five railway lines. Closure of the railway from Staffordshire to Stockport is also allowing Network Rail contractors to carry out dozens of additional projects along the route.

Latest footage shows the major progress made over the last week. It reveals how, piece by piece, the large steel and concrete beams were driven by special police escort from a storage site at Trafford Park and craned into position in a carefully choreographed sequence over a four-day period. 

Lifted by two huge cranes, with a combined capacity of 1,300 tonnes, the new bridge parts were inched into position across a 60 m gap above the tracks, in the place where the former structure was standing for 67 years.

William Brandon, Network Rail’s project manager, said:

?“The work at Greek Street has been planned meticulously, and its great to see it all come together on site as we expected. I’m so grateful to everyone working so hard on the project

“Once the railway reopens, journeys for passengers will be safer and more reliable for the next 120 years. This truly is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to improve the West Coast Main Line for future generations. I’d like to thank local people for their patience while the project continues, and to passengers whose journeys have been affected over the last few weeks.”

Stephen Harnett, Murphy project manager, said:

“It’s immensely rewarding to complete this core milestone of the project. The effort put in by our team has been nothing short of amazing as they work around the clock to upgrade and return this critical piece of infrastructure to the local community.”

Lisa Magee, Avanti West Coast station manager at Stockport, said:

“It’s great to see the work to Greek Street bridge is progressing nicely, as the project reaches this latest milestone. We’d like to thank our customers for their continued patience and understanding while the West Coast Main Line is closed and remind those who are making journeys up to and including 22 August to plan ahead, check the National Rail website before travelling, and leave plenty of time.” 

Cllr Grace Baynham, Cabinet Member of Parks, Highways and Transport Services, said:

“We’re continuing to work closely with our partners to support our local residents and businesses every step of the way as Network Rail delivers the essential improvements Stockport needs. 

“I want to thank residents and businesses for their continued patience and resilience – we know it hasn’t been easy, but the way people have responded to the disruption so far really shows the strength of our community.”