Timelapse footage shows HS2 engineers move 1,620 tonne bridge over the Grand Union Canal

A 1.5-mile stretch of the Grand Union Canal has reopened a week ahead of schedule after HS2 engineers slid a 130-metre steel viaduct into place over the waterway near Ufton in Warwickshire.

The canal, owned by the Canal & River Trust, had been closed while the 1,620-tonne bridge deck was manoeuvred across a country road, canal and towpath as part of construction of the Longhole Viaduct.

Engineers completed the complex operation in just two days using a “skid shoe” method. Two large hydraulic jacks pushed the bridge forward at speeds of up to 10 metres per hour, with specialist pads coated in a Teflon-like material reducing friction as the structure slid into position.

Once in place, the weathering steel viaduct was lowered onto its supports and secured, with the installation finished at 7pm on Thursday 5 March.

The launch followed two and a half years of preparation work, including installing 34 piles up to 30 metres deep, constructing two concrete piers and building the abutments that will support the bridge. Engineers also installed 37 precast planks that form the base of the bridge deck.

A new retaining wall was built along the canal using seven-metre-deep sheet piles to protect the waterway during construction. Vibration levels were also carefully monitored to safeguard the nearby Grade II listed Longhole Bridge.

The timing of the work was planned with the Canal & River Trust to coincide with the canal’s winter close season, helping minimise disruption for boaters.

The viaduct sits about a kilometre from the north portal of the Long Itchington Wood Tunnel. When HS2 trains emerge from the tunnel they will pass through Ufton Wood cutting before crossing the new bridge.

Construction of HS2 between London and the West Midlands now supports around 30,000 jobs.

Watch the timelapse footage of the bridge launch.