Video | Kier installs M6 gantries while motorway stays open

Kier Highways has installed three large cantilever gantries over nine nights on the M6 while the motorway remained open.

The three gantries weighing 24 tonnes and 18m in width now span the carriageway on the M6 between junction 14 (Stafford) and junction 15 (Stoke).

They were installed with a contraflow in operation, with one lane of traffic travelling north on the southbound side and traffic running south in three narrow lanes.

A team of 57 people worked each of the nine nights to install the gantries along with six smaller MS4 gantries and 28 lighting columns.

The M6 J13-15 smart motorway project is the first of its kind to operate under a full contraflow for the length of the works.

Richard French, project director at Kier Highways said: “We are coming to the end of a section of work on the northbound M6 and this critical activity makes the end date significantly closer. All teams have planned their activities meticulously and collaboratively, so that the result is completion to plan and on programme. There is a large amount of personnel involved and I would like to thank everyone for their solid performance during this complex activity.”

The scheme, which started in 2017, is scheduled to finish by 2022. As work progresses to the opposite carriageway, the contraflow operation will switch in the New Year.