By 2019, Regent Street flyover, which was built in the 1960s, had reached the end of its life and needed replacing. However, with 40,000 vehicles crossing over it and 30,000 travelling beneath it every day, closing the entire junction would have caused widespread disruption, congestion and pollution from gridlocked traffic.
WSP and Balfour Beatty devised an intricately planned solution that would enable us to demolish and replace half the bridge at a time, keeping traffic moving around the works. With the complex logistics having to be planned to the millimetre, a 3D cloud survey and 4D design enabled us to piece together the jigsaw puzzle and communicate the programme clearly to stakeholders, which ranged from large organisations such as nearby retailers and local media to local community groups.
Getting out of the ground is one of the most challenging parts on any project, and reusing the existing piles not only streamlined the programme but also saved concrete and reduced waste to landfill. Other materials were reused or recycled wherever possible. In total, by October 2020 the project as a whole had diverted over 7,000 tonnes of waste from landfill.