The design and construction of the Pont Briwet Viaduct, UK

Minimising maintenance requirements and whole-life costs is becoming increasingly important to clients. The new Pont Briwet combined road and rail viaduct in north Wales addresses this, as it is a fully integral structure. No movement joints were provided for the highway and no rail adjustment switches were required. At 133 m long, eliminating any movement provision posed certain design and construction challenges. This paper describes the analysis undertaken to prove movement provision was not required and describes how this influenced the arrangement and detailing. As it is set in a picturesque estuarine location in Snowdonia National Park, the client also desired a visual form for the viaduct befitting its surroundings. The construction challenges in meeting this requirement and those posed by the integral nature of the viaduct are also described.