OREANDA-NEWS. Network Rail is investing more than ?1bn in the north of England to provide passengers with a better railway. To electrify the line the bridges have to be rebuilt to increase the clearance underneath to accommodate overhead lines which will power trains.

Aisling Wall, scheme project manager for Network Rail, said: “The rebuilding of these bridges is an essential part of the electrification of the railway which will provide passengers with faster, more reliable and efficient services.

“I apologise for any disruption caused to the surrounding road network but we have worked closely with the local authority to plan the diversions and will complete the work in the quickest and safest possible way.”

The bridge and road closure details are:

Granville Street:

• A road closure at the bridge itself will be required from Monday 27 July 2015 until 23 December 2015.
• A temporary footbridge will be constructed in advance of the closure to maintain pedestrian access. This temporary bridge will also be used to carry the diverted utility pipes and cables from within the bridge.
• The main work to demolish and reconstruct the bridge will take place over two weekends when the railway will be closed: 12.30am on Saturday 12 September 2015 until 5.05am on Monday 14 September 2015 to demolish the bridge; 12.30am Saturday 19 September until 5.05am on Monday 21 September 2015 to build the new bridge.

Mossley Road:

• A road closure at the bridge itself will be required from Monday 27 July 2015 until Wednesday 23 December 2015.
• The main work to demolish and reconstruct the bridge will take place over the course of three weekends when the railway will be closed: 12.01am on 12 September until 6.10am on 14 September 2015 to demolish the bridge; 12.01am on 26 September until 6.10am on 28 September and 12.01am on 3 October until 6.10am on 5 October 2015 to rebuild the new bridge.

Electrification will help to provide a cleaner, faster and more reliable railway for passengers with much needed additional capacity.

The nature of the work means some disturbance is unavoidable but every effort will be made to minimise any unnecessary noise. Diversions have been agreed with the local authority and will be clearly signposted along with signage for businesses which are open as usual.