The removal of a flyover in Perry Barr, Birmingham, has now been completed in the UK. The work was carried out successfully by the contractor Tarmac within a tight timeframe.
The 50-year-old flyover carried the busy A34 and was safely removed in just a single weekend (February 5-8) to make way for an improved road layout. The work marks a key stage in Phase 2 of the A34 Perry Barr highways improvement scheme.
Extensive planning was needed for the job to be carried out safely. Now that the structure has been removed, work will progress with the new dual carriageway, cycle paths and improved public transport services. The highways scheme forms part of a £500 million regeneration project to transform Perry Barr and surrounding areas.
Working alongside specialist subcontractor S Evans & Sons Demolition, principal contractor, Tarmac employed seven excavators to remove the flyover.
The excavators were fitted with demolition attachments to crush and remove the concrete superstructure and to cut through the steel supports. Over 300 lorry loads of materials were removed from the site, with all of the waste steel and concrete set to be recycled. The Tarmac team was able to help further minimise disruption for the public by removing the flyover abutments as well as the spans in one go.
With strict timings and only one weekend allocated for the work, careful coordination of traffic management was critical to the successful completion of the job. Transport for West Midlands (TfWM), working closely with Tarmac and the City Council, led in the organisation and communication of statutory diversion routes.
The network was closely monitored through the Regional Transportation Coordination Centre to keep local residents, businesses, commuters and visitors informed of live traffic updates, road closures and alternative methods of travel.
Phase 2 of the A34 Perry Barr highways improvement scheme is set to complete in May 2021. Tarmac is now planning lifting pre-cast sections of a new bridge onto the redesigned Birchfield Junction nearby within the next few weeks.
The wider programme of Perry Barr highway improvement works is set to be completed at the end of this year and will see local roads remodelled and redesigned to make the area more accessible by sustainable forms of transport including a new Sprint bus priority corridor.
The highway scheme will support the delivery of new homes, improvements to public transport, walking and cycling routes, new community facilities and lively public spaces in Perry Barr, to make it one of the most well-connected areas in the West Midlands.
