Council staff have won commendations from the Instit-ution of Civil Engineers for their work on two major bridge projects.

Engineers who worked on the Hebden Road landslip remedial scheme near Haworth and the Aireworth Bridge strengthening project at Keighley will be presented with Achievement Certificates by the Lord Mayor, Cllr Tony Miller, in his Reception Rooms on Wednesday.

Cllr Phil Thornton, chairman of the council's highways sub-committee, says: "I am delighted that we have scooped two awards from the Yorkshire Association of the Institute of Civil Engineers. Staff from engineering, legal and property service departments have worked on these two schemes and I am pleased they have received official recognition."

The Hebden Road scheme was highly commended and the Aireworth Bridge scheme was commended by the Yorkshire Association of the Institution of Civil Engineers.

A massive scheme was devised for the A6033 Hebden Road to alleviate a landslip problem on the exposed hillside between Haworth and Oxenhope. The road was closed and a 400-metre length of buried viaduct was constructed to isolate the road from the land likely to move from beneath it. The viaduct has 27 spans supported by 26 pairs of piers, making it the largest highways structure in the Bradford district.

It was done following geotechnical investigations by Bradford University. The road was re-opened last month after being closed for a year.

The 100-year-old Aireworth Bridge in Keighley spans the River Worth at a skewed angle and needed strengthening before the introduction of 40-tonne vehicles on UK roads this year. The judges noted that a difficult structure was strengthened to present day code requirements using existing materials.

A report on the commendations will go before members of the highways sub-committee who have been invited to the presentation.

which will follow their meeting.

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