Celebration marks unveiling of new £23m motorway bridge
A new £23 million bridge has been unveiled in Greater Manchester, marking the eagerly anticipated completion of a three-year scheme.
National Highways and its partners celebrated the opening of St Anne’s Road motorway bridge in Denton with a ribbon-cutting ceremony performed by four pupils from the neighbouring St Anne’s Primary School, accompanied by the Reverend Philip Brierley from St Anne’s Church, who also led a short blessing of the bridge.
The new structure, which crosses the M67, will provide unrestricted access for all road users and pedestrians, including improved eastbound access to the motorway.
National Highways Project Manager Mangat Bansal said:
“It has been a privilege to deliver this scheme and work with the local community. Replacing the motorway bridge is the culmination of a lot of hard work, presenting unique engineering challenges with the bridge carrying vital utility services including water, gas, electricity and telecommunications to customers across a wide part of Greater Manchester.
“We thank the local community for their patience and understanding whilst the bridge has been closed for construction.”
Joining the youngsters at the official opening were the project team, civic dignitaries, school staff and invited guests.
National Highways worked in partnership with Tilbury Douglas to deliver the scheme.
Carlos Garcia Ferrer, Project Director at Tilbury Douglas, said:
“This has been a great scheme to deliver. All those involved in the project, including our teams, supply chain partners and contractors have showcased a high level of technical expertise throughout and can be proud of their achievement.
“A measure of their professionalism is the attainment of ‘Excellent’ ratings in recent successive Considerate Constructors Scheme results, leaving a lasting positive legacy through their community engagement initiatives, working with local schools, offering learning opportunities through the national Open Doors initiative and supporting numerous organisations, charities and community groups.”
These initiatives included raising thousands of pounds for blood cancer research charity DKMS, making regular donations to Hyde Morrisons’ Foodbank, and sponsoring school and community events.
The project achieved an ‘Excellent’ rating score of 48 out of 50 at their final Considerate Constructors inspection, inspectors praising the project’s “exemplary plans for community engagement” and its “effectively driven” approach to carbon reduction.
A key achievement was the project’s contribution to National Highways’ Net Zero Carbon Plan. Measures included recycling demolition materials, sourcing suppliers within a 30-mile radius that operate carbon reduction policies and installing a solar-powered CCTV security system on site.
Several partners supported delivery of the scheme, including HW Martin, Concrete Repairs Limited and Amey Consulting. The team also worked closely with Tameside Metropolitan Borough Council’s highways department to manage local diversions.
The decision to replace the original St Anne’s Road bridge was taken after assessments showed the ageing structure required extensive repairs. Replacement was identified as the safest, most practical and cost-effective solution.
As well as meeting modern safety standards, the new bridge will improve journey reliability locally and on the M67 by reducing the need for unplanned maintenance closures. It can also accommodate heavy vehicles, removing previous load restrictions, while new barriers and improved facilities enhance safety and accessibility for cyclists and pedestrians.
The project involved a series of significant engineering milestones, including:
- Demolition of the bridge deck, which carries vehicles across the bridge, achieved by two huge excavators with long-reach arms and fitted with hydraulic jaws operating from carriageway level, before removal and realignment of the abutment walls, which support the bridge at each end.
- Transporting and installing two steel beams weighing a combined 97 tonnes to carry essential utility services following demolition of the original bridge deck, plus lifting four pairs of braced steel beams into place, weighing more than 250 tonnes in total, to support the new bridge deck.
Mr Bansal added that the demolition and construction works were completed to programme, in line with the original planned three-year timetable.
With the opening of the new bridge, the former St Anne’s Road diversion route via the road by the former Penny Farthing pub has now closed to traffic.
Further details about the project can be found here
Notes to Editors
Picture captions:
Year Six pupils from St Anne's Primary and the Reverend Philip Brierley are joined by members of the bridge team and invited guests to celebrate the opening of the bridge at the opening ceremony.
Year Six pupils from St Anne’s Primary, from left, Annabella, Eva, Nathan and Joshua, with the Reverend Philip Brierley declare the bridge open.
Further pictures available upon request.
