Rope access engineers have been shown on video conducting restoration activities at Glenfinnan viaduct by civils contractor AmcoGiffen for Network Rail.
Engineers used rope access instead of scaffolding for its efficiency and to minimise environmental impacts. The rope access method also allows workers to reach and restore areas which would otherwise have been inaccessible.
The project, which began in April 2024, involves engineers assessing the condition and strength of the viaduct before completing concrete repairs and improvements under the track to keep stone ballast in place.
Meanwhile, at ground level, engineers are working in the River Finnan, protecting the viaduct piers from erosion caused by the fast-flowing river. This protective work is “even more crucial as the weather gets warmer and wetter due to climate change” according to Network Rail.
The work is part of a £3.4M investment to repair the viaduct.
The viaduct, which was built between 1897 and 1901 by Robert McAlpine, is category A listed and is the longest concrete railway bridge in Scotland at 381m long. It is 30m high, has 21 spans and carries the West Highland line.
It has more recently grown in fame due to its use in the Harry Potter film franchise. With the addition of tourists wishing to experience the famous journey of the Hogwarts Express, seen in the films, around 200,000 people ride the train annually and it is estimated that it brings in £35M a year.
Network Rail said at the time it was investing £1.7M to remove loose vegetation from the slopes above the railway and install rock netting.
The work was intended to protect 14 rock cuttings over a 4km stretch of single-track railway between Locheilside and Lochailort. This included both Glenfinnan station and viaduct.
Renewal of sections of boundary fencing was also planned to protect visitors who follow the tourist path up the hillside and to stop them straying onto the railway.
Three years later in March 2023, a freedom of information request submitted to Network Rail by The Scottish Mail on Sunday revealed a series of reports on the safety of the viaduct have been carried out over the last five years. The need for repairs was first identified in 2019 when a report highlighted fractures throughout the bridge.
Network Rail said in 2023 that it was “finalising plans for repair works” on an “urgent defect”.
Later in 2023, Network Rail submitted an application for listed building consent to the Highland Council for plans to repair cracks on the listed Glenfinnan Viaduct in Scotland.
Commenting on the rope access work, Network Rail director of engineering and asset management Alan Ross said: “It’s not often, even in my job, that you have the chance to walk on the West Highland Line’s Glenfinnan viaduct.
“Given its importance and scale – we’re treating this refurbishment slightly differently, with rope access teams scaling the viaduct to assess and repair it.
“We’re doing it this way rather than using scaffolding as it’s more efficient and doesn’t spoil the view for the hundreds of thousands of people visiting this beautiful area.”
Ross said Network Rail was “very proud to be custodians of this much-loved part of Scotland’s Railway and don’t take this responsibility lightly.
“There’s a lot more work still to be done in the coming months – we will continue to share updates of progress.”
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2024-07-12 08:00:00
