Broom Lane Bridge Replacement Project: Day 28 26th March 2026

Thursday

It's bridge lift day, the pinnacle moment of what we've all been working for, the biggest visual update on progress and a monumental moment for our Railway.

The lift was due to take place just after 09:00, I didn't hide that mornings aren't great for me, but made the effort and arrived on site for 09:00 exactly.

The Railway's photographer - David Staines and Principal Designer - Peter Brown were already on site.

The weather conditions were on our side a nice bright, dry day which was a contrast to the previous day.

They did a few test lifts early to check things out, and did various tasks to prepare for the big event. It became clear that methodology had been tweaked and that the lift was an hour away. I don't recall the exact reason as I write this, it was best to let the Team continue with their work, rather than interupt.

Our Contractor - Beaver Bridges, trusted the client team and were afforded access to the entire area, whilst adhering to the site rules for which I am very grateful.

As it neared to lunch time, a few of us began to get hungry but no one wanted to leave site and miss the lift!!! A slight hiccup made it clear that enough time was available to make a lunch run, so some made the dash for food!

As the afternoon went on two HGV's arrived from Emerson's the crane hire company, to collect the counter weights, but the lift hadn't taken place. The Scouts were expecting visitors from 16:00 and I had visions of the site becoming congested and needing to consider our Stakeholder's requirements. I asked everyone to bunch their cars up to save space, which everyone very kindly did.

The Crane comes with two driver/operators, one in the crane and the other in the support vehicle, which they then take turns. I asked if the support vehicle driver would be able to help with traffic flow in the carpark and he readily agreed, which was a relief. Upto a 150 scouts arriving/leaving could've been an issue.

The next issue for the site team to tackle was, one of the lorry drivers would run our of hours at 19:00 and needed to be back at their depot by that time, which I understand is in Essex. Time is ticking on, it's gone 16:00 now.

The lift actually took place around 16:30 - 16:45, by this time I was very tired and in pain, but equally relived to see the bridge deck being lifted. The process took 15 to 20 mins, the large movement from compound to above highway was quick, it's the alignment work and resting into place which takes the time.

Once in place there's a flurry of activity to check if everything is ok, this also included our very own Principal Designer, who spotted alongside the Contracts Manager a slight issue, which resulted in the bridge being lifted up again and hovering a little over the site.

The crane operation is impressive, with hand signals from the site. I imagine the controls are of a joystick style as the operators skill made it look simple, but I'm sure it wasn't.

I think by the time all the checks had been done and everyone was satisfied, it was close to 18:00 and the light beginning to go.

We all stood for a Team photo, many on the bridge deck but I couldn't climb upto it and I knew my limitations, so stood on the side. The photo is a little dark which reflects the site conditions, but what a relief and a sterling effort by everyone.

Just after the photos, I took the liberty of addressing all those involved, the Beavers Team and site Management and our own Spa Valley Team. I thanked everyone very much for their hard work and how much of a positive impact the work is for us. They'd done a very long day, I didn't drag out, but got a reassuring thumbs up from a Beavers chap, which was very nice.

I signed out at 19:00 a mere 10 hours on site, absolutely worn out/exhausted but equally elated at what everyone had achieved and humbled in the faith everyone had in me. THANK YOU!

A selection of photos from the day below, there are more but have people in and I want to check before publishing.