As work officially starts on the £225m Luton Airport Light Rail Link, HBPW’s engineers are poised to play a key role in what is probably one of the UK’s most important intermodal transport projects this side of the Millennium.
A new above ground Direct to Air Rail Transit (DART) system, designed to operate 247 with trains every four minutes, is being created to move passengers between Luton Airport Parkway and the flight terminal in under four minutes. Once open in 2021 travellers from St Pancras will be able to reach London Luton Airport in just 30 minutes.
The aim is to transform the experience of those travelling to the airport by rail and encourage more people to do so, whilst reducing congestion on the roads.HBPW Partner, Paul Monaghan, said: “This is a huge project and, over time, we will be playing a key part in bringing it to fruition, principally by delivering the engineering for the construction of a new pedestrian footbridge and concourse over the railway tracks at Luton Parkway Station.
“This element will also include associated lifts and three escalators – two doubles and a single – in the operational platforms, in order to provide a greater capacity link between the Network Rail station and the new Mass Passenger Transit system. The whole project is about the efficient movement of people and, as populations in the south of England continue to place increasing pressure on transport networks, it is vital that planners continue to innovate solutions like this.
”Currently, shuttle buses carry passengers between Parkway station and the airport but these can be erratic and, subject to traffic congestion.
However, the new, monorail-style system is being designed to ensure that services along the 2.1km route are fast, frequent and reliable as well as safe, secure and comfortable.
“The real challenge on this project is keeping a busy railway station and bus terminus operational during the construction phase. Consequently, we will need to temporarily reduce the width of station platforms in order to create the room to construct the new bridge foundations and superstructure. Not only is this technically challenging but there is also the added dimension of accommodating a 24-hour train schedule.
“For all the technical considerations the process of narrowing the platforms is somewhat more basic. Before we do this we will simply observe people traffic flows and, dependent on what we see, this will inform how much we are able to reduce platform widths and still keep people traffic moving efficiently, albeit in a smaller surface area.”
Eventually monorail services will run between two purpose-built stations at Bartlett Square (formerly Stirling Place) on the north-east side of the existing rail lines, and the airport terminal, crossing a new gateway bridge over Airport Way.
From there the route will be elevated, running south to the existing rail line, until it reaches the A1081 where it will cross the A1081 (Airport Way) via a new ‘Gateway Bridge’. At London Luton Airport terminal, passengers will be able to leave the DART and access the terminal quickly.
“HBPW has an impressive range of rail credentials, gained over years of working with Network Rail and associated contractors. This is a complex project that will make a huge positive impact on transport links in the south, however, the breadth of experience amassed by our team of engineers over more than a decade, makes HBPW the go-to engineering firm for this type of project,” added Paul. “It is a challenge but one we are happy to meet.”