Working from the water under the country’s longest wooden bridge.
Our impact
31t
The weight of the bridge’s central span
46m
The length of the Temple Footbridge
6.5m
The height of the span above water
At 46m, Temple Footbridge is the longest hardwood bridge in Britain.
Spanning the Thames
The stunning Temple Footbridge is an arched timber pedestrian footbridge spanning the Thames near Hurley in Berkshire.
At 46m, it is the longest hardwood bridge in Britain. The centre of the bridge gives a height of 6.51 metres (21.4 ft) above the water, allowing the passage of a range of vessels.
Built in 1989, the bridge was recently closed due to concerns about the extent of degradation of the structure’s joints, before a decision was made to remove the centre span in order to inspect the bridge further.
A crossed winch system was used to manoeuvre the pontoon and keep it steady.
Jacks and winches
Working on behalf of the Environment Agency, the Jackson team came up with an innovative approach to remove the 31t centre span section.
The team assembled a hydraulic bridge lifting system onto a floating pontoon, which was then positioned under the centre of the bridge span.
The lift was a carefully controlled process where the bridge section was jacked upwards within the A-frame in increments of 250mm. The team had to ensure it did not snag on the outer spans while a crossed winch system was also used to manoeuvre the pontoon and keep it steady.
Seamless operation
The central span was fully disconnected from the outer spans and partially lowered after a nine-hour seamless operation.
The next day, the centre span was fully lowered and moved to a secure location. Shortly after, it was transported further down the river to an EA compound for inspection and storage.
Once the inspection is complete, it will be determined whether the bridge can be refurbished or requires replacement.
The centre span is currently in storage awaiting inspection.
