National Highways have launched a competition to find a winning design for a low-carbon footbridge over the A127 in Essex as part of the Lower Thames Crossing.
National Highways (NH) have launched a competition to find a winning design for a low-carbon footbridge over the A127 in Essex as part of the Lower Thames Crossing (LTC) project. New Civil Engineer reports that they are collaborating with NH to look for innovative designs from architectural and specialist civil engineering firms.
The bridge will provide pedestrian access between Moor Lane and Folkes Lane on the boundary between Southend in Essex and London. It will allow the local community to walk to local green spaces, including a new 95 hectare woodland that is being created in partnership with Forestry England. The bridge will be part of the £9bn LTC scheme.
Shaun Pidcock, Programme Director, Lower Thames Crossing, said: “The LTC is green by design, and a pathfinder project focussed on driving down carbon. We’re committed to giving local communities better access to green spaces – existing ones, and the new ones we’ll be creating right across the region, where we are planting over a million extra trees.”
“For every mile of new road we are building, we’ll construct or enhance almost three miles of pathways for walkers, cyclists and horse riders. This new footbridge across the A127 will restore pedestrian access between Moor Lane and Folkes Lane, giving local people a new connection and opportunity to make the most of these green spaces.”
NH have suggested that the winning entry could form the blueprint for further footbridge installations around the UK. In a statement on their website, they explain: “The humble footbridge plays an understated but vital role keeping communities connected, allowing access to green spaces and encouraging active transport.”
“National Highways is responsible for more than 600 footbridges in England, with 176 of them in the south east, and many will need to be maintained or replaced in the coming years.”
The LTC project is still in the planning stage, and is currently with the secretary of state for transport for consideration, with a decision expected by early October. If it goes ahead, it will be the largest road tunnel in the UK, intended to relieve congestion on the Dartford Crossing between Kent and Essex.
Currently, the longest road tunnel in the UK is the Queensway Tunnel, also known as the Birkenhead Tunnel or the Old Tunnel, which runs beneath the River Mersey between Liverpool and Birkenhead. It is 2.13 miles (3.45 kilometres) long, and it is a toll tunnel that is used by approximately 35,000 vehicles per day.
It was built in 1934, and took almost nine years to complete. It has a single four-lane carriageway with two lanes in each direction, and a lower deck that is used for ventilation and emergency services. Originally, it had a second branch to Birkenhead in Rendell Street, but this was closed in 1965.