Rail work Botlekbrug starts

Under the auspices of the A-Lanes consortium, Strukton has started work on constructing the access roads to the bridge. 

Pumice
The access roads must not put too much pressure on the underlying Botlek railway tunnel and the cables and pipes underground. For that reason, lots of calculations were done prior to the actual construction. Ultimately, a construction was chosen with the ultralight Yalibims (volcanic pumice from the Greek island Yali) as the surface.

Precise work
Between the access road and the bridge, a ‘box’ will be constructed on the eastern side, to give added reinforcement. That box (steel braid) is necessary because there is no space for a normal structure, which is wider. On the other side, there is room for a normal access road. Building the access roads well is precise work, because the rails between bridge and abutments must fit exactly. And that requires great accuracy.

The entrance to the Botlekbrug, with the visible surface of the feather-light pumice stone ‘Yalibims’.

The big picture
The A-Lanes A15 consortium is responsible for the project on behalf of ProRail and Rijkswaterstaat. Work is being conducted on the rail, the overhead line and on a new cycle and pedestrian connection. Once that has been completed, they will install the protection systems and the rail can be connected to the current railway network of the Havenspoorlijn. Venkelweg and Oude Maaspad will also be redesigned.

The project is an example of excellent cooperation between Strukton Civiel and Strukton Rail. Strukton Civiel produced the subgrade (track bed) on which Strukton Rail is to construct the track. If everything goes according to plan, the works will be completed by April 2019.

The entrance to the Botlekbrug, with the visible surface of the feather-light pumice stone ‘Yalibims’.