Good afternoon,

As you can see from the previous post comments, I will be providing an update tomorrow afternoon.

In the meantime I thought it would be good to update you on progress from last week.  We have now managed to complete the base for the thrust block encasing the pipework.  The team are currently constructing the new chamber for the valve, as the old chamber needed to be demolished to allow the base slab to be constructed.

Once this is complete the work will begin on the reinstatement of the footpath. This includes replacing the kerbs and setting the manhole covers to the correct height to allow the footpath to be relayed.  We will then need to divert both pedestrians and cyclists on the footpath to all us to reinstate the road.

I will be speaking to both the site and project team tomorrow to provide a further update.

Thank you once again for your continued patience and understanding.

Christine

Good afternoon,

Just a short, quick update this week.

This week we have had steel fixers on site installing the reinforcement for the base slab. This should be complete by Friday morning which will allow us to pour the concrete on this  afternoon (Friday).

Over the weekend we have joiners working on site, this will enable the team to pour the concrete on Tuesday 11 September.

Following the above work, the site team will be working extremely hard in the next few weeks to complete the backfilling, reinstating the kerbs and relaying the footpath and road. 

We will let you know how we are progressing with this work next week.

Have a great weekend.

Christine

Good morning,

I have been provided with an update from our site team.

The team are extremely positive about progress last week and wanted to share it with everyone. 

The issues that they faced with the dangerous cables crossing our excavation have now been resolved.  Meaning the excavation is underway again.  By the end of the week we hope the base slab will be in place and getting ready to pour the concrete next week.

We have included a photo of the cables which have caused our delays which now been proven redundant and a short video of the cable work.

Christine

Further to our last update, Northern Power Grid successfully made their cable redundant on the bridge which is one box ticked.

National Grid attended site this week to inspect the works area. They have confirmed their Subcontractor hopes to carry out a check to see if the cables are live or not (live/dead check)  on the Wednesday 29th Aug.  All being well, if the cables are found to be redundant, by close of play Wednesday we should be in a position to start the excavation and proceed with the construction of the thrust block.

As you can see, we are continuing to work closely with the utility providers to ensure the work is completed as quickly as possible. The companies who own the cables do have a difficult task in proving their cables are redundant and must be 100% certain before they carry out any disconnection work.  Should the cables still be live not only would it result in a power outage, but would pose a great threat to life for the people working on or near them.  This is why we are being very careful and following processes closely.

Completion is still forecast as late September.

Have a great weekend.

Darren.

Good evening,

Following the update from Alan yesterday, the project team can now advise the following;

The Western concrete ‘thrust-block’ around the water main is now complete. However some existing power cables are preventing our excavation works from progressing on the Western side. In order to continue our works we need to have the cables de-commissioned. One of the cables belongs to Northern Power Grid (NPG) and the others belong to National Grid.

We have been working closely with NPG and National Grid to have the power cables moved so we can progress with our works on the Eastern side of the bridge. NPG are planned to complete works over this weekend which should render their cable redundant which should be one problem solved.

We continue to work closely with National Grid in order to have their cables made redundant. We hope to have a resolution by the end of next week all being well. However, taking the above into account our completion date is now expected to be late September.

The works we are undertaking are not straight forward and simple. As the water main is of great importance to the North East we cannot take any risks which could compromise the existing main, surrounding services or the bridge itself. We continue to do everything we can to improve our programme on site. When the cables are taken out of use we will continue our works including working extended hours over the weekends in order to re-open the bridge.

We understand the frustration of the community whilst we carry out our works, and thank you for your continued patience and understanding.

Christine

Good evening,

Following last week’s update we have now managed to complete the Eastern section of the concrete ‘thrust-block’. You may notice that pedestrian access has been moved over the Eastern side of works. This has allowed us to progress with the excavation works to the West.

We are working closely with Northern Power Grid to have some electric cables diverted to allow us to progress with our works. Hopefully this diversion is carried out very soon so we can make better progress.

Please feel free to discuss the works with our Site Team on site if you are passing the area. We are still hopeful we can re-open the bridge to traffic in September.  We may be able to provide a further update tomorrow or early next week.

Many thanks,

Alan.

Welcome to the Customer Portal for the Newburn Bridge Water Main Repair.

We can now confirm the leak on the water main is fully repaired. However, we need to construct a large concrete thrust-block which will restrain the forces created by the main. This will essentially prevent the water main from moving when pressure is created by the flow of water.

The concrete thrust-block is a large block of concrete that will stop the water main from moving in the future.  This needs to be constructed in 2 halves in order to maintain pedestrian access over the bridge. We aim to complete the Western half of the concrete ‘thrust-block’ this weekend all being well.

We have plans to install a new temporary pedestrian footbridge to the Western side of Newburn Bridge. Once pedestrian access has been transferred we will start excavating and constructing the Eastern side of the thrust-block.

As you may have noticed we have been working weekends, and expect this continue throughout August.   

We will keep you updated with our progress throughout our works.  I have included some photos of our work this week.

Thank you for your patience whilst we carry out our work.

Alan

Welcome to the Community Portal,

Customer's may be aware that we are currently working on Newburn Bridge following a water main burst.  This page will allow our team to update the local community with our progress, which also enables customers to ask questions. 

How it works?

If you have any questions or comments, you can simply post a comment on the post.  Alternatively, you can click on the 'Contact Us' button and complete the form.  Then one of project team will be in touch within 72 hours.

The Team

I thought it would be beneficical to introduce the project team who are working at this location.

James Potter is the Project Manager working on behalf of Northumbrian Water and is overseeing the work -  a photo will follow in the next few days.

Alan Croft is the Contracts Manager for the scheme working for Esh-MWH on behalf of Northumbrian Water Ltd. He will oversee the progress of works on site, as carry out the repair. Alan will be helping to maintain high levels of safety, quality and customer engagement.

My name is Christine Taylor, the Customer Service Manager from Esh-MWH.  I will monitor this portal for comments and liaise between the community and the team to ensure timely and accurate updates are provided. 

Thank you

Christine