Building bridges from the Foyle to Ojague

In 1984 the Foyle Bridge in Northern Ireland was completed and opened to traffic. During construction by the RDL–Graham joint venture the seven prestressed concrete approach spans were supported by temporary works which included considerable quantities of Bailey bridging equipment. In 2005 Graham donated this Bailey bridging material to a charity, Friends in Action, which knew of villages in Guinea, West Africa that were isolated for five months every year during the rainy season. The author of the present paper was asked to act as consulting engineer to the project. The Bailey equipment was used to build two bridges, in 2006 and 2007, in Guinea. This paper outlines the environment, the background, the preparations, the design, together with details of the construction methods, the plant and materials used, the problems encountered, their solution and the outcome. Conclusions are derived, and recommendations given to help ensure the success of similar low-tech bridge projects in developing countries.