A1(M) Darlington Bypass

DARLINGTON BY-PASS MOTORWAY A.1(M)

OFFICIAL OPENING Friday 14th May 1965 by the Minister of Transport The Right Honourable Tom Fraser, M.P.

Highway Authority: Ministry of Transport

• Permanent Secretary - Sir Thomas Padmoore, G.C.B.
• Director of Highway Engineering - W. G. Harris, C.B., M.A., M.I.C.E.
• Chief Highway Engineer - J. G. Smith, M.I.C.E., M.I.Mun.E., F.Inst.H.E.

Agent Authority: Durham County Council

• Chairman of the County Council: Councillor S. C. Docking, J.P.
• Vice-Chairman of the County Council: Alderman J. R. S. Middlewood, O.B.E., J.P., D.L.
• Chairman of the Highways and Bridges Committee: Councillor W. E. Reveley
• Vice-Chairman of the Highways and Bridges Committee: Councillor G. H. Hunter
• Members of the Highways and Bridges Committee: County Aldermen Clough, and Lynch B.E.M.
• County Councillors Armstrong, Bainbridge, Bone, R. W. Brown, Campbell, Carter, Clark, B.E.M., Crawford, Cronin, Davidson, Dowson, Elliott, W. W. Emerson, Emmerson, Furnace, Gordon, Hawkshaw, Hedley, Hindmarch, Hopkins, Johnson, Kay, B.E.M., McDarby, McDarmont, Mellroy, Meldrum, D. Metcalfe, Pimlett, Prudham, J.P., Richardson, Sudder, A. G. Taylor, Thurlow, Toft, Usher, J. Walker, Ward, Wilkinson and Youngson.
• Clerk of the County Council: J. T. Brockbank, M.A.
• County Engineer & Surveyor and Engineer for the Contract: W. H. B. Cotton, M.Inst.C.E., M.Inst. Mun.E., Dip. T.P., F.Inst. H.E.
• Chief Resident Engineer: J. A. M. MacKenzie, A.M.I.C.E., A.M.I.Mun.E., A.M.Inst.H.E.
• Deputy Chief Resident Engineer: J. R. Jefferson, A.M.I.C.E., A.M.I.Mun.E., A.M.Inst. H.E.

Main Contractors

DOWSETT ENGINEERING CONSTRUCTION LTD., HARROGATE.

• Managing Director: J. M. L. Uren, B.Sc. (Eng.), A.C.G.l., A.M.I.C.E., A.M.I.Struct. E., A.M.I.W.E.
• Director and General Manager: B. H. F. MacArthur, A.I.O.B.
• Project Agent: F. W. Hatter
• Chief Engineer: A. Gosden, B.Sc., A.M.I.C.E.

Principal Sub-Contractors

• Bridges: Brims & Co., Ltd., Westerhope, Newcastle upon Tyne 5.
• Asphalt & Black Top: Constable, Hart & Co. Ltd., Richmond, Surrey.
• Fencing: Armstrong Addison & Co. Ltd., Sunderland.
• Site Clearance: Thomas Graveson Ltd., Carnforth, Lancs.
• Turfing & Seeding: Webster Bros. of Horsforth Ltd., Yeadon, Leeds.

Darlington By-Pass Motorway A.1(M)

The Contract for the construction of 10½ miles of Motorway to by-pass Darlington and Barton from a point just north of Scotch Corner to Crumbley Corner south of Aycliffe, with an additional 2-mile Motorway Spur to Blackwell Bridge and Darlington, was awarded to Dowsett Engineering Construction Ltd. with a starting date on 16th April, 1963, at a tender figure of £5,231,613, with a Contract Period of 24 months. With the exception of certain clearing up operations on Side Roads, this large project has been completed with a minor extension of four weeks on the Contract Period, and should do much to relieve traffic congestion on the existing heavily overloaded Trunk Road A.1 and through the important County Borough of Darlington. The new Motorway is some 1½ miles shorter than the existing route through the centre of Darlington, and is another important link in the comprehensive Ministry of Transport programme for dulling Trunk Road A.1 between London and Newcastle. The speed of construction was facilitated by the advance construction of three bridges, a major 3-span concrete structure carrying the Motorway over the River Tees, a single span concrete bridge carrying the Motorway over the Darlington-Barnard Castle Railway (both built by the Cementation Company Ltd. of Doncaster), and a two-span steel and concrete structure carrying the Darlington-Bishop Auckland Railway over the Motorway at Stanley Farm, constructed by the Cleveland Bridge and Engineering Company Ltd. of Darlington. The Darlington By-Pass will form the first and most southerly section of a continuous length of Motorway, nearly forty miles long, between Scotch Corner in the North Riding and Trunk Road A.184 and the approaches to the new Tyne Tunnel at White Mare Pool.

The total cost of the Darlington By-pass, including advance bridges and an extension of A.68 at Burtree Gate, strengthening of approach roads, advance alterations to high voltage overhead lines and high pressure water mains, together with the cost of site staff and laboratory control, will amount to approximately £65 millions.

Further sections north of Crumbley Corner, Aycliffe, are in various stages of design and it is the intention that the Motorway should be completed over its whole length by 1969. Advance Contracts have been let and work is already in progress on a number of bridges and advance earthworks at Ricknall Carrs prior to the early letting of the next main contract covering a 5½ mile section between the northern terminal of the Darlington By-pass and the next interchange on A.689 at Bradbury to connect with Sedgefield, the Hartlepools and North Tees-side. The Durham County Council as Highway Authority is currently carrying out progressive large scale improvement works on Class I Road A.689 with the aid of Ministry grants from the Special Funds provided in the Government White Paper on the North-East (Cmmnd 2206).

The route of the Darlington By-pass Motorway passes through country entirely rural in character, and has followed closely for a length of some seven miles the line of the old disused Merrybent Railway, thereby minimising the problem of severance, and the only property affected has been the old Station House at Barton, and some Glasshouses at the Merrybent Nurseries. In the design stage considerable thought was given to fitting the Motorway profile and alignment as smoothly as possible into the terrain.

Many problems were encountered and resolved successfully during construction with the goodwill and co-operation of all concerned.

Constructional Details

The Motorway has been constructed to the latest standards of design and the following information covers the main features:-

1. Design Speed: 75 miles per hour.
2. Minimum Radius of Curves: Horizontal 2,865 feet; Vertical 30,000 feet.
3. Maximum Gradient: 1 in 40 (2.5 %)
4. Minimum Gradient: 1 in 250 (for drainage).
5. Overall Effective Width: 105 feet (95 feet at bridges)
6. Total Area of Land: 342 acres, of which some 40 acres were taken up by the old Merrybent Railway.
7. Geological Formation: Mainly glacial clay deposits with pockets of sand, gravel, peat and some alluvium. Rock also occurs as both Magnesian and Carboniferous limestone.
8. Earthworks: Total earthworks (including 900,000 cubic yards of imported fill) 3⅔ million cube yards. Imported fill 700,000 cube yards. Side slopes: Min. 1 in 3., Max. 1 in 2.
9. Drainage: Positive in central reservation and both verges.
10. Fencing: 44 miles (25 miles Post and 5-rail on Motorway. 19 miles assorted on Side Roads).
11. Carriageways: Dual 24 feet (each with a 10 feet wide hard shoulder) separated by a 15 feet central reservation. 10 inch composite flexible base on minimum of 18 inch prepared sub-base, surfaced with 4 inches of hot rolled asphalt.
12. Bridges: 34 in number comprising a mixture of steel, prestressed concrete and composite construction.

Constructional Procedure and Control

Dowsett Engineering Construction Ltd. divided the Contract into two sections, one north and one south of the River Tees, each being under the direct control of a Section Agent working under the main Project Agent. The Durham County Council Resident Staff was allocated on the same basis with two Section Engineers supported by the appropriate complement of Engineering Staff, Clerks of Works and Inspectors. The separate sub-contract for Bridges carried out by Brims, and Co. Ltd., was supervised by a separate D.C.C. Bridge Engineer and Staff with the overall co-ordination carried out by the Chief Resident Engineer. This breakdown worked out very well in practice.

During the peak periods of construction - in the summer and autumn of 1964 - payments on monthly measurement well in excess of £300,000 were maintained over a continuous period of some six months. The main Contractor and Sub-Contractors deployed very considerable resources of heavy plant (details of which are given in Appendix A to this Brochure), and the maximum number of men employed on the project during the peak period of construction varied between 750 and 800.

The Contractors made the fullest possible use of local indigenous materials, using imported fill from borrow pits, hard well burnt red shale from a number of old colliery heaps in Durham County, and a hard carboniferous limestone won from a new quarry opened up at Barton. Details are given in Appendix B of overall quantities of the main materials used in construction, and also the peak weekly outputs. Details are also appended of other Sub-Contractors and Major Suppliers of Materials.

Full Laboratory and Testing Control was maintained throughout the period of the Contract by County Council personnel operating from a well equipped site laboratory. The Main Contractors retained the services of Messrs. Sandberg, specialised testing consultants to look after their interests and a good measure of co-operation was maintained throughout the period of the Contract.

The whole of the design work and the supervision of construction has been carried out by the staff of the County Engineer and Surveyor.

Appendix A

Heavy Plant used during Contract

• 25 Mechanical Excavators (up to 1½ cu. yd.)
• 15 Cranes (up to 30 tons)
• 8 14 cu. yd. twin-engined scrapers
• 14 9 cu. yd. tractors and scrapers
• 6 Motor graders
• 15 Bulldozers
• 15 Rollers
• 60 Lorries
• 20 10 cu. yd. Dump Trucks
• 14 Dumpers
• 8 Paver Finishers
• 8 Air Compressors
• 20 Pumps
• 30 Land Rovers
• 2 Self propelled automatic chipping spreaders
• 4 Mobile generators
• Mobile servicing and refuelling equipment
• 2 Parker Star Mix 40 Asphalt plants
• 1 40 cu. yd. /hr. S.G.M.E. concrete mixer
• 1 60 cu. yd. /hr. S.G.M.E. concrete mixer

Appendix B

Overall Quantities of Main Materials Used

Acknowledgements

Best thanks are due to all the many interests involved in the carrying out of this major project and in particular to the Ministry of Transport Officials directly and indirectly involved, the County Council site staff, other County Council Departments, the Contractors, their Management, staff and workmen. Also to the District Valuer and his staff at Darlington, the various Local Authorities affected, the Wear and Tees River Board, the British Railways Board, the various Statutory Undertakers involved, and the Police and Fire Services. Special reference must also be made to the excellent co-operation with the North Riding County Surveyor and his staff.

A scheme of this magnitude, carried out under typical English weather conditions, to a tight programme, cannot avoid a certain amount of inconvenience to owners and occupiers of land and premises on the line of and adjacent to the Motorway, and a tribute is due to all adversely affected for their forbearance and co-operation. It is hoped that they in common with the North East Region as a whole, will find consolation in the benefits which this new facility will bring in the future.