Ready, set, lift! Giant ‘superspan’ gantry installed across M6
This is the moment a giant ‘superspan’ gantry was installed across a stretch of the M6 as part of a major upgrade to ease congestion.
The structure is nearly 131ft (40m) in length and weighs around 46 tonnes. It was lowered into place by a specialist crane weighing 200 tonnes.
The new gantry spans the width of the M6 and was installed at the weekend near Corley Services between junctions 3 (Coventry / Nuneaton) and 4 (Coleshill).
It will house the technology responsible for providing safety information to motorists as well as advising drivers of changes in variable speed limits to help traffic flow more smoothly.
Highways England captured timelapse footage of the painstaking work that took place overnight while the road was at its quietest.
Once finished, the new-look stretch of the M6 will feature:
- three controlled motorway lanes, retaining the hard shoulder from junctions 3a to 4 where the motorway will tie into the existing controlled motorway
- a four-lane smart motorway between junctions 2 to 3a with a hard shoulder next to the current ‘climbing lane’ travelling eastbound
- installation of new electronic information signs and signals, radar detection and CCTV cameras – these will be used to vary speed limits which allow management of traffic flow and incidents
- nine emergency areas to use in place of the hard shoulder
- an improved central reserve barrier made of concrete to improve safety
- two new noise barriers at Potter’s Green and Goodyers End and low noise surfacing on the road
