Small Heath Access Road

Scope of Work

Leading to Small Heath Rail Depot from Anderton Road in Birmingham, the works involved the installation of a tarmac road with kerbs.

The road provides access for Network Rail and Freight operators to the depot, including Cemex who transport hundreds of thousands of tonnes of construction materials every year via rail through the depot, reducing CO2 emissions and congestion on our roads.

The existing road structure consisted of multiple layers of tarmac, concrete, and compacted Type 1 aggregate that had been built up over time to fill potholes, increasing the road height by up to 700mm in certain areas. The process included:

• Using a road planer to remove the accumulated road layers and restore the surface to the designed levels.
• Installing kerbs with drop kerbs every 10 meters on both sides for water runoff.
• Constructing the new road with a Type 1 sub-base and 300mm of tarmac, incorporating a 1 in 40 cross fall for proper drainage.
• Installing traffic signs and traffic calming measures to complete the project.

Challenges

During execution, unforeseen complications arose:

• Underground services not documented in existing plans were discovered. These were later identified as redundant, but required verification.
• Metallic structures from previously demolished buildings were found buried beneath the road. These unknown obstructions caused equipment damage, including breaking the road planer, leading to delays.

Despite these challenges, our team successfully mitigated setbacks, recovered the schedule, and delivered the project on time. The client was highly satisfied with the outcome and the collaborative approach taken to ensure smooth project execution.