TECHNICAL
constructionmanagermagazine.com
SHAUN ARMSTRONG
Technical
LUTON DART POINTS IN RIGHT DIRECTION THE TRANSIT SYSTEM BEING BUILT TO CONNECT LUTON AIRPORT WITH ITS NEAREST RAIL STATION IS A COMPLEX JOB, INTERFACING WITH LIVE ROAD, RAIL AND AIR ENVIRONMENTS. KIER’S OLIVIA PERKINS, WHO IS RUNNING THE BUILD, TALKS CM THROUGH THE MAJOR CHALLENGES
The Gateway Bridge was moved to the site on two self-propelled transporters
“Communication is absolutely key here,” says Olivia Perkins, Kier’s senior project manager in charge of the Luton DART project, which has an overall value of £225m. And it’s not difficult to follow her reasoning when she describes the complexities of scheme. Officially known as Direct Air-Rail Transit, this cable-drawn passenger transport system will link London Luton Airport with the nearby mainline Luton Airport Parkway station across a busy dual carriageway. There are several significant design and engineering challenges to coordinate, plus interfaces with live airport, rail and road environments and a workforce of over 200 at peak to manage.
Fortunately, Perkins has plenty of experience of major infrastructure projects – and large project teams. “I’ve got five section managers in charge of the seven different sections [see map], and each of them is always vying for shared resources,” she explains. “We’ve only got one concrete supplier across the whole DART project and at times there were clashes over which concrete pours took priority. So I had to make tough choices and do what’s right for the job overall, and the client.” The VolkerFitzpatrick-Kier JV (VFK) began work on the DART scheme in April 2018. From the Parkway station next to the mainline rail connection, the route – which climbs around 30m
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16/02/2021 12:12
