Latest photos Sept 30th

Just had time for a visit to the west side of the work site.   The short section of missing embankment linking the main line to the start of the viaduct appears to be virtually finished.  Two more sections of viaduct heve been lifted into place, leaving four unbridged sections.  The shuttering is starting to come off the edges of the viaduct revealing the finished look.

Looking north from the River Hiz bridge, the new retaining wall with a digger on top adjacent to the viaduct.  You can just make out the new sections of viaduct on the left.

Same wall from the scrapyard entrance.

 Turning round and looking north, the three remaining piers without the viaduct with the latest sections behind.

 New sections from the other side of the scrapyard.

 The last two piers to be constructed finished awaiting the viaduct.  An East Coast service heads north on the main line.

 The two new sections looking south.

 This shot shows the remaining gap waiting to be bridged.

 Moving further north, the viaduct curves round to meet the main line.

 Moving up onto the higher ground, you can make out the new sections of viaduct through gap in the piers

 Final picture shows the section over the east coast main line with a First Capital Connect service heading north.  The shuttering and walkways have gone.  Safety fencing has been installed.  I realise now that the jutting out sections are not refuges but there to take the overhead staunchions.  They do not appear on the other side.

More videos

Three short videos showing the latest progress.

First Autumn report

On a very pleasant what is now officially an autumn day, I visited the west side of the main line and the end of Wilbury Way.  I was surprised to find that Bury Mead Springs nature reserve had been mowed and that it was very easy to access after a summer of beating my way through.  Another section of viaduct is now in place leaving only six unbridged sections left.  The embankment work is rapidly approaching completion.  On a brief visit on Friday, it looked like ballast being spread and rolled along more than half of the embankment.  Virtually all of it has the soil capping in place.  Only the very last bit where it meets the viaduct hasn't been completed.  This has been a very impressive piece of work considering that it only started in June.  Hats off to CJ Pryor, the subcontractor.

Here is the latest section with the late afternoon sun glinting off the side.

Here you can see the remaining piers waiting for their viaduct sections. End of the first section can just be seen middle right.

 Moving further north, the last sections to be added including this week's.

Looking south from the start of the higher ground. 

 By the scrapyard entrance, a concrete support wall is being built up to support the embankment to the left of the digger.

 Turning around and looking north, the remaining piers all virtually completed now.  I am guessing another three weeks will see the remaining sections in place.

 Looking from the end of Wilbury Way, only the very short section before the viaduct needs soil capping.

 Turning slightly right from the same spot, the embankment with the soon to be redundant quarry behind.

 Looking from Hillgate at what appears to be the lowest section of embankment.  The tents of the lavender farm can be seen behind but the brightly coloured strip of lavender has gone now.

 Turning to the right to what becomes the highest section of embankment.  It looks like ballast is in place here.

 Standing on the top of the bank, the main work site can just still be seen with heaps of material stockpiled.

Latest pictures 16th September

Quite a bit of progress this week.  First section of the viaduct has been lifted into place by the scrapyard entrance, out of sequence with the others.  One further section has gone in  and the embankment work is nearing completion.

First shot looks from Cadwell Lane to the scrapyard entrance through the main line bridge showing the first section in place.  It is further away from the existing bridge than the former Bedford line bridge was prior to demolition.

Looking back the other way.  Trains will run quite close to the offices of the scapyard.

Looking north.

 And for completion, looking south.  A new construction can be seen in the centre of the picture.  Not sure what its purpose is but it is certainly in the centre of the connecting embankment.

Looking up into the viaduct section.  Looks like an inspection hatch in the end.  Wooden decking will follow I am sure as with the other sections.

Looking towards the new section from the gas pipe that crosses the River Hiz.  The embankment has been extended here and soil capping put in place. The top of the bridge can be seen centre right.

The new section looking south.  Compared to the other sections, this seems quite low so there will be quite a gradient here.

 Looking south from the higher ground you can just make out the new section almost dead centre of the picture.

Here is the other new section added in the last week.

New section looking south.

And from a bit further away.  Still curving round at this point.

 Work to install the concrete edging follows as each section is added.  There is a repeating pattern of small jutting out areas as seen above.  I wonder if these might be refuges for future permanent way maintenance workers.

 At the end of Wilbury Way the embankment has almost reached the viaduct end.  As you drive down the road it is quite visible now from a distance.  It has moved through the perimeter fence of the former sewage works.  Sadly it looks like the path that ran from here to the Icknield Way which was very popular locally will be no more.  It was unofficial but was there for many years.  Until the embankment arrived, I had noticed people still cutting through because the fence wasn't that secure.

 Looking from further away at the same area.

 Turning to the right the embankment skirts the office block at the very end of Wilbury Way.

 Taken from Hillgate, the embankment passes same clump of bushes seen on the left as in the previous picture.

 Turning to the right, the soil capping is being laid.  Quite soon it will look like it has always been here.

Embankment report

Nothing of interest happened on Sunday morning during the road closure.  It appeared to be some minor bridge maintenance work.  I took the overgrown path beside the Cambridge line to the point where the new embankment meets the existing line.  Just a few pictures to show the progress on this side of construction site.

Cambridge line to the right, new embankment to the left with a thin soil capping in place.

Accommodation bridge.  Different material is being used to construct the embankment immediately either side.  Chalk quarry is in the background.

 Shot from slightly further away.

 Turning slightly to the left, the embankment is pretty much up to its finished height.  Needs final profiling and capping.

 And further round almost to the end of Wilbury Way.  More to do on the extreme left.

Latest news Saturday 8th September

I visited the site on a glorious Saturday morning.  I was surprised to find that it was a hive of activity unlike previous Saturday visits when there were just a few people on site. 

Construction workers were removing scaffolding from recently poured viaduct supports.  This shot taken beside the scrapyard looking north.

 Another worked a loader along side one of the only two unfinished supports.

 Two more sections have gone in as I suspected.  Short section again straddles the pier.  Every other pier has two pairs of mountings.

 Side on view of the new sections.

 Side decking has been added to more sections.  Workers were in evidence all along these sections right along to the other side of the main line.

 Looking back south at the recently added sections stretching away now from the higher ground.

 Shuttering has been removed and you can now see the concrete lip and the steel reinforcing ready to be shuttered.

 Looking through the trees at the new sections.

 I perched on the gas pipe again to take this shot of the end wall where the embankment will meet the viaduct.

 And from the other side looking over the wing wall of the former Bedford line bridge.  The viaduct supports have their mountings now as do piers two and three in the next picture.  The road here is closed tomorrow so I wonder if they are going to lift in this section.  Would have to be done on a Sunday to avoid disrupting the scrapyard.

 All week a digger has been at work here removing the old embankment.  It is now tiered for some reason as this shot shows.

 Numbers two and three with their mountings in place.

 I then moved to the end of Wilbury Way to find that the embankment construction is moving ever closer the the viaduct.  Perimeter fencing of the redundant sewage works has been removed and the ground prepared.  Not any great height here yet but it doesn't take long at the rate they work.

 From Hillgate, it looks like it is up to the correct height as it matches the top of the accommodation bridge.  One digger and dumper were working here.  It looked like soil capping was being put into place from what I could make out. More tomorow if there is any change.