Three years in the making, the Forder Valley Link Road in Plymouth has now been completed and is fully operational benefiting the people of the city and ensuring the infrastructure is future proofed for further growth. Kelston Sparkes was appointed by the main contractor, Balfour Beatty, in 2020 to undertake the groundworks for the new road. The huge contract included bulk earthworks, cut and fills for the large abutment embankments, reinforced earth abutments, wingwalls and retaining walls for the new bridge and junction and the construction of an attenuation pond. After working right through the lockdowns, the junction opened in September 2022 and the bridge in February 2023.  The benefits of the scheme are already being felt every day thanks to increased capacity, improved traffic flow and reduced delays to and from the North East of the city.

The 1km road is supported by the new Platinum Parkway Bridge which crosses over Bircham Valley providing a further connection from the south to the north of the city. It incorporates new walking and cycling facilities, along with new bus routes.

In the early stages of the project Kelston Sparkes completed all of the enabling works, haul road construction and bulk earthworks, including the capping under the sub-base, before handing over to the contractor to lay kerb stones and complete the tarmacing. To achieve this, large volumes of imported aggregates and other materials were obtained by Kelston Sparkes which were also used to bulk fill the approach roads and the abutments at either end of the bridge. The latter included breaking and ripping out of hard Devonshire slate and reprocessing it into suitable fills; no easy task.  To enable the widening of an existing carriageway on the south section of the project, the Kelston Sparkes team constructed a 5m high earth reinforced retaining wall.

David Swann, Commercial Director at Kelston Sparkes, oversaw the project; working alongside the Tier 1 contractor to ensure key deadlines were met;

“Despite the restrictions due to covid and the difficult nature of the site, we delivered a high quality, award-winning project that the end client, Plymouth Council, was exceptionally pleased with’

All work was carried out within a protected SSSI Zone (site of specific scientific interest) which has become somewhat of a specialism for Kelston Sparkes. Protecting the existing watercourse, home to otters and other wildlife, including newly released Beavers, was only made possible by the inclusion of the bridge (the largest of its kind in the UK) across the valley. However, to further enhance the natural habitat of local species, the scheme included the construction of a 44,000m³ attenuation basin for rainfall and excess water run-off from the road. The basin includes a filtration system for all water entering the area, as well as a small pipe outlet that can be shut off in the event of pollution.  This basin is now full of native species of aquatic plants and is already providing a new habitat for birds, reptiles and invertebrates, as well as a foraging resource for bats and otters.

A key part of the scheme was the construction of a new culvert that takes the Bircham stream water underneath the road junction which allows wildlife to move along the water course during all levels of water flow. Kelston Sparkes excavated the culvert, installed a platform for the cranes to drop the culvert in place and structurally backfilled the area after installation.

“This is a project that we were proud to be involved in. As well as providing quicker, more efficient travel links across Plymouth, it has opened up new areas of the countryside for the locals and safeguarded the local flora, fauna and wildlife. It is a fantastic example of progress by working with nature.”