Captured in timelapse video, here’s the moment the old Tolgroggan bridge over the A30 was dismantled at the weekend.
Among other work as part of National Highways’ A30 Chiverton to Carland Cross dualling scheme, the 32-year-old accommodation bridge was dismantled and removed during a full weekend closure of the road.
With protective pile mats and platforms strategically placed across the road surface and protection in place for the new bridge – installed by principal contractors Costain and their structures supply chain earlier this year – the dismantling of the old 164-foot structure started at 9am on the Saturday.
The high reach demolition process saw excavators meticulously and safely pick away the spans, parapets and steelwork. The work completed at midday on the Sunday and the debris was cleared and removed and banking replaced before the road reopened.The A30 was closed between Scorrier and Boxheater from 8pm on Friday, 15 September, and the road reopened to traffic just before 2am on the Monday morning.
Alongside the Tolgroggan bridge demolition, a realignment of the A30 also took place at the Chiverton interchange as work progresses on the new interchange flyover, and preparatory work continued at Marazanvose ahead of a forthcoming realignment to allow for work to continue on the scheme’s ‘green bridge’.
Neil Winter, Senior Project Manager for National Highways’ A30 Chiverton to Carland Cross scheme, said: “We appreciate road closures have an impact on people’s journey times, we understand roadworks can be frustrating, and we thank people for their patience during this weekend’s closure.
“The A30 closure enabled our contractors Costain and their teams to make real progress with a number of works at the weekend, we’re keeping all closures to a minimum and we’ll ensure we communicate well in advance any further closures later in the year.”
The new carriageway is scheduled to be opened at the end of winter 2023/2024 and in the meantime more information and further scheme updates are available at National Highways’ A30 Chiverton to Carland Cross web page .
The cost of developing the scheme is being partly funded by an £8 million contribution from the European Regional Development Fund, with an additional £12 million for the construction phase. The remainder of the cost of developing and delivering the scheme is being funded by central Government.