Innovation Award
5 January 2010
Highways Agency engineers and contractors (including
Costain) in Greater Manchester have won an award for
innovation, after delivering improvements along the M61 at the same
time as reducing inconvenience to drivers.
The use of the Dynamic Roadspace Utilisation Manager (DRUM) for
the first time anywhere outside the South East shaved two weeks off
the time needed to deliver the £4.1million scheme between Junctions
3 and 4 of the motorway near Bolton.
By utilising DRUM, engineers were able to calculate windows when
contractors were able to extend work beyond traditional working
times - enabling them to finish the work to install a new concrete
safety barrier and other improvements more quickly.
The system works by using trailer-mounted sensors to acquire
live, real-time data on traffic flow. By combining this fresh
information with historical statistics, specially-designed software
then calculates the optimum time for lane closures, improving the
pace at which roadworks can be undertaken.
The work on the M61, which also included bridge improvements,
began at the end of May and was finished two weeks ahead of
schedule on Saturday, September 12, saving £250,000 in the
process.
Around 80,000 drivers use this section of the M61 each day and
Highways Agency Project Sponsor John Mather said, "No one likes
roadworks but they are a necessity to keep our motorways operating
safely. By using DRUM we were able to ensure that the work
was completed and roadworks lifted sooner than originally
anticipated.
"Using DRUM on this scheme has saved us time and public money as
well as reducing inconvenience to our customers using the motorway
network."
The benefits of deploying DRUM along the M61 included fitting in
20 extra hours work at the weekends with day and night shifts
getting on with work without getting in each other's way.
DRUM was devised by contractor Costain, transport consultancy
TRL and technology supplier MTS. It will now be considered for
use during other schemes in the North West.
Its use on the M61 scooped first prize for innovation in the
Agency's own Phil Stanton awards. The internal competition is
designed to encourage fresh construction solutions from contractors
within the Highways Agency's Construction Management
Framework. The framework covers south Lancashire, Merseyside,
Greater Manchester, Cheshire, Herefordshire, Staffordshire,
Warwickshire, Worcestershire and the West Midlands.
Ends