Annerley Road – Bridge Strike Protection Beams
Contract Value: $1.7M
The project consisted of the construction of 2 new protection beams either side of the existing rail bridge over Annerley Road, to prevent over height trucks from striking the rail bridge. In conjunction, the existing height gauges were removed and the warning height gauge on Park Road East was replaced to span both approach traffic lanes.
The new protection beams were designed to take a 1000kN impact load at any point and are approximately 50mm lower than the existing rail bridge clearance. The project was designed by KBR with site construction and supervision provided by both Queensland Rail and KBR.
The site at Annerley Road is on a dual lane, two way arterial road servicing in excess of 20,600 vehicles daily. Due to the nature of the works being within such a built up area, much of the work had to be completed on weekends or nights, or under short term lane closures. A number of service locations were required to provide adequate clearances for piling works to proceed.
Key features of this project include:
- Protection beam structures – box girders fabricated from 20mm thick plate spanning the full width of the roadway. Each beam was supported by a heavily reinforced pilecap below ground, supported by bored piles.
- Existing height gauges – were removed and replaced with larger structure spanning across both approach lanes of traffic. The existing height gauges on Annerley Road were both required to be removed as part of the project, in conjunction with erection of the new protection beams.
- Works required the relocation of a live 150mm diameter sewer main and the replacement of 4 x 100 Telstra ducts.
- Team worked closely with QR communications team to ensure that the appropriate notifications and explanations were provided to local community and stakeholders.
- Project involved daily traffic management to facilitate construction activities. Traffic closures and disruptions were maintained within Brisbane City Council requirements with a full closure, with detour, required only for the erection of the protection beam. At no stage throughout the project were traffic queues in excess of 5 minutes.
The project was awarded the 2015 Queensland CCF Earth Awards, Category 1 for excellence in civil construction.
