Saar flyover: Final segment pushed into place, says Minister

TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

The final section of the multi-million-dinar flyover at the Saar intersection has been pushed into place without hindering traffic flow, said Works, Municipalities Affairs and Urban Planning Minister Essam bin Abdulla Khalaf.

The project, also the first of its kind completed using the ‘incremental launching’ technology in Bahrain, was completed in eight months.

Saudi Fund for Development (SFD) is backing the new BD20,171,345 bridge at the intersection of Shaikh Khalifa bin Salman Highway with Shaikh Isa bin Salman Highway.

Considered one of the most important strategic projects in Bahrain, the bridge is at the busiest crossing point for traffic coming via the King Fahad Causeway and Manama.

The project includes the construction of a new half-a-kilometre two-lane overpass to freely transfer traffic without stopping on Shaikh Khalifa bin Salman Highway.

“One of the advantages of the new technique is that the pre-cast concrete spans are pushed into its final spot without using pillars at the bottom, and hence without affecting traffic movement under the bridge.”

According to experts, the principle of the incrementally launched bridge consists of building the superstructure segments in a casting yard located behind the bridge abutment. Each section is match-cast against the previous one and prestressed to the super- structure already built. The entire superstructure is then pushed forward a distance equal to the length of this segment. This process continues until the bridge is in its final position.

“This method avoids traffic diversions on two streets that are considered the most important on the road network in the Kingdom.”

The single segment thus prepared to have between 18 and 24 meters of length, where one batch takes about eight days to complete. Placing it takes 4-6 hours, with the entire work taking eight months.

Pending works

Pending works include painting and moisture protection, asphalt laying and completion of road works, which will take place as other related works progress.

The new bridge, when fully operational, could handle up to 3,600 vehicles per hour with an estimated 45,000 vehicles per day.

Using the bridge, it will take approximately one minute to reach Isa Town and seven to eight minutes to Isa Town.

The current bridge can handle 900 vehicles per hour and 17,300 vehicles per day, with it handling nearly 5,000 vehicles per hour and 96,000 vehicles per day, meaning that the traffic volume exceeds five times its capacity.

Contractor of the project is an alliance of Al-Ghanim Contracting Company and Al-Fahd Contracting Company.