Construction World December 2022

CONSULTING ENGINEERS

REHABILITATION OF 13,4 KM OF TRUNK ROAD 31/2 FROM ASHTON TO MONTAGU THROUGH COGMANSKLOOF, INCLUDING THE NEW ASHTON ARCH BRIDGE

T he project aimed to reconstruct parts of the Trunk Road 31 Sect ions 2 and 3 f rom Ashton to Montagu (start of touri st Route 62) . Thi s was needed to improve traf fic and pedestrian safety, as wel l as to improve the flood capaci ty of bridges and res i stance of the overtopping of the road at several problem locat ions . I t included the upgrading of the hi storic Cogmanskloof Pass which was original ly completed in 1877 by the renowned road engineer Thomas Bain. The 13 km long road sect ion i s also the start of the strategical ly important touri st ‘Route 62’ wi th more than 8 000 vehicles travel l ing through Ashton and 4 000 vehicles through Cogmanskloof Pass toward Montagu ever y day. The New Ashton Arch i s South Af rica’s fi rst concrete t ied arch bridge constructed us ing a transverse launching method. I t represents a proud moment for the Western Cape Government , Department of Transport and Publ ic Works : Roads Branch, the people of the Ashton-Montagu area, and al l the contractors , labourers and suppl iers who were involved in the project . AECOM was the appointed structural engineer, whi le the bui ld was contracted to H&I Construct ion. State

of-the-art bridge analys i s and sof tware packages were used for the construct ion stage analys i s , in-ser vice analys i s and des ign, a joint ef fort by AECOM teams in South Af rica and the Uni ted Kingdom’s long-span complex bridge teams . The management team of H&I Construct ion worked in close relat ionship wi th AECOM to develop met iculously detai led method statements , wel l in advance of each act ivi ty, to ensure compl iance and agreement before construct ion commenced. 

PROJECT INFORMATION

• Company entering: AECOM • Client: Western Cape Government, Department Transport & Public Works, Roads Branch • End date: 30 March 2022 • Main Contractor: Haw & Inglis Civil Engineering • Consulting Engineer: AECOM

72 21 st Best Project Awards 2022