Reading Station Transfer Deck

Reading Station is of great strategic importance on the rail network as it is a hub for services entering and leaving London from all over the country. Reading has a thriving commuter population as it is located40 miles west of the capital. Due to the number of train routes that converge on Reading and the number of services that run on them, Reading has long been recognised as a major bottleneck with severe delays recorded on a daily basis. The existing station looks dated and for most parts of the day is severely overcrowded. To allow Reading to grow, both Network Rail and the Local Authority have embarked on a multi million pound project to regenerate the area. Network Rail works have included re-construction of the majority of the station, removing the bottleneck and increasing capacity. As part of the station works a new transfer deck has been constructed to provide access for all in and out of the station and to and from all platforms. The solution was an unobstructed open space virtually the size of a football pitch. The new transfer deck was complex to build, at least in logistical terms. Reading station is located in a congested city centre and crosses over one of the busiest sections of railway in the country. The station had to remain operational throughout the works which made construction a potential nightmare in terms of scheduling, planning and safety restrictions. An innovative installation methodology was utilised which removed the risks associated with this very difficult scenario. The bridge was constructed off line in a newly cleared area of land to the north of the existing station. The bridge was then launched, using a strand jack system, across the railway corridor with minimal disruption to the operational railway.

This paper describes the bridge design including the temporary launch and how the innovative installation enabled construction without any disruption to one of busiest sections of railway in the country.