Dyer & Butler has completed a major highways and public realm improvement project within Brighton Valley Gardens on behalf of Brighton & Hove City Council (BHCC)
Valley Gardens is comprised of 23-acres of green space that runs from St Peter’s Church to the Palace Pier in the centre of Brighton.
Dyer & Butler’s team of highway engineers focused on two strategic routes between St Peters Church and Edward Street in the centre of Brighton, with the aim of simplifying the existing highway network through Valley Gardens and enhancing the cycle and pedestrian networks to improve levels of safety.
As Valley Gardens is a critical hub for public transport in the city, the temporary traffic management employed had to maintain essential bus routes flowing throughout the scheme works.
In order to do this (and also to accommodate for weekly community events held in the city) bespoke temporary traffic and pedestrian management designs and equipment were deployed in 34 separate phases.
The team pioneered an innovative traffic management solution to connect all of the temporary signal heads to the wider Brighton MOVA system, ensuring continuous traffic flow during the works. This system mimicked BHCC’s permanent traffic light operations and was half the cost of the commonly used alternative.
Use of BIM technology
Existing infrastructure lead to technically challenging design queries. These issues were overcome through collaborative working and the specialist knowledge of the project team who implemented innovative solutions to reduce delays, disruption and client costs.
A good example was the use of BIM technology which was implemented to allow on-site engineers to identify areas requiring attention and draw up a solution instantaneously on a virtual 3D model.
Dyer & Butler also worked alongside surfacing specialists to install an innovative surfacing solution which provided an ultra-high-performance asphalt.
This offered BHCC significant benefits including reduced maintenance costs through greater durability and productivity benefits which accelerated installation time, reduced programme times and minimised disruption and road closures.
Collaborative working
Paul Hartley, Dyer & Butler senior contracts manager on the scheme, said: “We worked closely with stakeholders through our full-time community liaison officer throughout to ensure transparency of ideas and, in turn, this public area has been rebalanced in favour of agile travel for the public.”
Simon White, Highways director at Dyer & Butler, said: “Before these works, Valley Gardens was neither a place nor a link.
“We have transformed this and created an accessible and enjoyable space for the Brighton and Hove community.
“This scheme benefitted from Dyer & Butler’s experience of running similarly large and complex inner-city redevelopment schemes which ensured the project team was able to understand and anticipate issues before they arose.
“The success of our traffic flow management was a true feat of collaborative working, and I expect our innovative method will be imitated across the UK in the ongoing effort towards delivering unobtrusive roadworks.”
