Work starts this month on Widnes Loops viaduct

Construction teams are preparing to install a set of giant concrete beams for a new road viaduct in Widnes, as part of the creation of a junction to take traffic to the Mersey Gateway bridge.

Work starts on 13 January, when the beams will be lifted into position to form the Widnes Loops viaduct, a high-level road crossing that will carry traffic over the Widnes Loops junction.

Eight pre-cast concrete beams, each measuring up to 31 metres long and weighing around 65 tonnes, will be lifted into place by a 350-tonne crawler crane positioned in the middle of Victoria Road.

A series of weekend and overnight closures are planned for Victoria Road and Waterloo Road while the work takes place to minimise disruption and to ensure the safety of pedestrians, motorists and construction workers.

Closures are scheduled for the following times:

• 7.30pm on Friday 13 January to 5am on Monday 16 January
• 7.30pm on Friday 20 January to 5am on Monday 23 January
• overnight closures on Monday 16 January, Tuesday 17 January and Wednesday 18 January from 7.30pm to 5am

A local vehicle diversion will be in place and pedestrian access will be maintained at all times.

Hugh O’Connor, general manager at Merseylink, the consortium delivering the Mersey Gateway, said: “These essential works form part of the wider construction that is happening at the Widnes Loops junction. Closing the road will allow us to safely construct the new road viaduct above Waterloo Road. As ever, the safety of pedestrians, motorists and our construction workers is our number one priority.”

Further closures will take place in February to allow construction teams to lay the concrete deck for the viaduct.

Widnes Loops will be a major junction on the site of the former Catalyst Trade Park, which will take traffic to and from the new Mersey Gateway Bridge, the A562 Speke Road towards Liverpool, the A557 Widnes eastern bypass towards the M62 or into Widnes town centre.

Several new roads and bridges will be built in the local area, including a new freight line bridge over the Garston to Timperley Rail Freight Line and two new bridges carrying the main road between Liverpool and the Mersey Gateway bridge over the Widnes Loops junction.

Merseylink’s equity partners are Macquarie Capital Group, BBGI, and FCC Construcción. The construction joint venture is made up of Kier Infrastructure and Overseas, Samsung C&T Corporation and FCC Construcción S.A.