At an accelerated pace: the largest overpass in Vitebsk is planned to be commissioned in a year
The most high-profile construction project in Vitebsk recently is the erection of the Polotsk overpass. Why high-profile? Because after the prosecutor's office's order to close the previously existing hazardous transport infrastructure facility over the railway, the traffic flow was rerouted just over a year ago to narrow streets of the regional center not adapted for this purpose. According to the project, the overpass construction period is four years. But, to the surprise of the townspeople, the large-scale reinforced concrete structure is growing literally by leaps and bounds. Today, specialists say that the construction and installation work can realistically be halved.
Precision in Everything
It's 9 AM. The construction site is like an anthill, the busiest place is near the central spans over the railway tracks. A specialized mobile crane with a lifting capacity of over 100 tons has been delivered by rail and is being deployed here. Beam transporters are on standby. The beams, weighing up to 40 tons, are several tens of meters long. The project manager, Mikhail Kazurov, Head of the Technical Supervision Department of the Capital Construction Directorate of the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee, is maximally focused:
— Today is a very intense day for us. We are installing beams on the penultimate span over the railway tracks, practically with a stopwatch in hand. It is important to do this as quickly and accurately as possible. The beam needs to be placed with an accuracy of up to 12 millimeters. We are working in close coordination with the railway workers. We have relocated part of the tracks, but the construction still affects train schedules. We use windows in the schedule, so the process needs to be calculated minute by minute.
The construction site, covering about 20 hectares, looks massive. 220-250 people and 60-70 units of equipment work here daily. The general contractor is the Vitebsk branch of MSU No. 5 of Mostostroy OJSC. Colleagues from Grodno MSU No. 7, as well as over 20 construction and installation enterprises and organizations of the Vitebsk region, are helping them. Mikhail Kazurov continues:
— 16 out of 17 supports for the main span have already been installed, each consisting of three "clusters." Another 7 supports will be installed for the ramps to the adjacent streets. In terms of the number of beams for the spans, there are about 350 of them. They are supplied to us by the Fanipol Reinforced Concrete Bridge Structures Plant.
Future Prospects
The main part of the bridge crossing, including the section over the rails, is over 800 meters of the future four-lane road. In some places, the traffic will transition to six lanes – before the interchanges on the ramps, which are designed as "butterflies." Interestingly, the new overpass is 1.5 meters higher than the old one, which will allow railway workers to electrify this section of the tracks without problems in the future. And since the top, as before, will carry traмваи, a transformer substation and contact network will be built here, which will not only provide power to the city's trams but, with appropriate plans, will also be able to take on the operation of trolleybuses.
How do the builders plan to halve the construction period? The project manager shares his plans:
— Construction is currently underway in parallel with design. The project itself was adjusted precisely to shorten the timeframe – we cannot block one of the central transport arteries of the city for a whole four years. But don't think that the idea itself will suffer from this. The overpass will become a real decoration of the city, there will be convenient pedestrian sidewalks and crossings, parking lots, and the adjacent bus station will receive additional space for placing route vehicles.
Precision in Everything
It's 9 AM. The construction site is like an anthill, the busiest place is near the central spans over the railway tracks. A specialized mobile crane with a lifting capacity of over 100 tons has been delivered by rail and is being deployed here. Beam transporters are on standby. The beams, weighing up to 40 tons, are several tens of meters long. The project manager, Mikhail Kazurov, Head of the Technical Supervision Department of the Capital Construction Directorate of the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee, is maximally focused:
— Today is a very intense day for us. We are installing beams on the penultimate span over the railway tracks, practically with a stopwatch in hand. It is important to do this as quickly and accurately as possible. The beam needs to be placed with an accuracy of up to 12 millimeters. We are working in close coordination with the railway workers. We have relocated part of the tracks, but the construction still affects train schedules. We use windows in the schedule, so the process needs to be calculated minute by minute.
The construction site, covering about 20 hectares, looks massive. 220-250 people and 60-70 units of equipment work here daily. The general contractor is the Vitebsk branch of MSU No. 5 of Mostostroy OJSC. Colleagues from Grodno MSU No. 7, as well as over 20 construction and installation enterprises and organizations of the Vitebsk region, are helping them. Mikhail Kazurov continues:
— 16 out of 17 supports for the main span have already been installed, each consisting of three "clusters." Another 7 supports will be installed for the ramps to the adjacent streets. In terms of the number of beams for the spans, there are about 350 of them. They are supplied to us by the Fanipol Reinforced Concrete Bridge Structures Plant.
Future Prospects
The main part of the bridge crossing, including the section over the rails, is over 800 meters of the future four-lane road. In some places, the traffic will transition to six lanes – before the interchanges on the ramps, which are designed as "butterflies." Interestingly, the new overpass is 1.5 meters higher than the old one, which will allow railway workers to electrify this section of the tracks without problems in the future. And since the top, as before, will carry traмваи, a transformer substation and contact network will be built here, which will not only provide power to the city's trams but, with appropriate plans, will also be able to take on the operation of trolleybuses.
How do the builders plan to halve the construction period? The project manager shares his plans:
— Construction is currently underway in parallel with design. The project itself was adjusted precisely to shorten the timeframe – we cannot block one of the central transport arteries of the city for a whole four years. But don't think that the idea itself will suffer from this. The overpass will become a real decoration of the city, there will be convenient pedestrian sidewalks and crossings, parking lots, and the adjacent bus station will receive additional space for placing route vehicles.
Winter is not an obstacle
The upcoming cold weather will not affect the pace and quality of work in any way, the bridge builders assure. Specialists will use concrete mix with special chemical antifreeze additives, as well as carry out electrothermal treatment of structures. It will take about three months to build another support on the railway tracks and the already started installation of span structure beams. Numerous ramps will be arranged in parallel. The minimum task is to meet the deadlines set by the President and open traffic on the bridge by January 1, 2021. The maximum task is to present a gift to the city for the regional "Dazhynki" planned here in the autumn of next year. But in any case, the housewarming is near.
COMMENT
Vladimir Belous, Deputy Chairman of the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee:
— The construction of the Polotsk overpass is a strategically important issue for both Vitebsk and the region as a whole. Work began back in 2011, but due to funding problems, it was stopped. Now the builders are working at a rapid pace, so the inconvenience for citizens and city guests will be minimized in time. There are no problems with funding or material supply.
The upcoming cold weather will not affect the pace and quality of work in any way, the bridge builders assure. Specialists will use concrete mix with special chemical antifreeze additives, as well as carry out electrothermal treatment of structures. It will take about three months to build another support on the railway tracks and the already started installation of span structure beams. Numerous ramps will be arranged in parallel. The minimum task is to meet the deadlines set by the President and open traffic on the bridge by January 1, 2021. The maximum task is to present a gift to the city for the regional "Dazhynki" planned here in the autumn of next year. But in any case, the housewarming is near.
COMMENT
Vladimir Belous, Deputy Chairman of the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee:
— The construction of the Polotsk overpass is a strategically important issue for both Vitebsk and the region as a whole. Work began back in 2011, but due to funding problems, it was stopped. Now the builders are working at a rapid pace, so the inconvenience for citizens and city guests will be minimized in time. There are no problems with funding or material supply.