Curzon Street Station Approach. Composite Viaducts: Lawley Middleway and Duddeston Junction Viaducts. Design for launching construction methodology

Lawley Middleway and Duddeston Junction are two steel–concrete composite viaducts passing through urban areas and crossing over existing railway lines, roads, and a river to bring the new HS2 High Speed Rail line to the future Curzon Street Station in central Birmingham. These viaducts will be part of the new Birmingham City landscape have been designed considering the most advanced “state of the art” codes, material performance and construction methods. Special consideration is given to the innovative launching sequence required for the installation of the viaducts: a combination of self-propelled modular transporters (SPMTs), skid-shoes and jacking towers for Lawley Middleway and an incremental launching of a steel deck curved in plan with a non-uniform radius for Duddeston Junction. The collaborative environment developed between the designer and the Contractor and HS2 has been key for project success.