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The project: Manchester Metrolink Phase 3 extensions
Laing O’Rourke was part of the MPT design and build consortium delivering the £900m Phase 3 extensions to Manchester Metrolink for Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM), which were set to make it the largest light rail network in the UK.
The first phase of the extensions to Metrolink started in 2008. The construction of a complete new twin track line, linking central Manchester to its international airport, gained approval and funding to proceed in 2010. The £1.5bn total investment programme was designed to triple the size of the Metrolink network, cutting road congestion by an expected five million car journeys every year. At the time, Greater Manchester’s Metrolink network was already carrying around 22 million passengers a year.
Part of the Phase 3 contract included 15km of new tramway through southern Manchester to extend the Metrolink to Manchester Airport. This included 5km of street-running tramway, with interfaces at over 28 major highway junctions and two motorways – a major construction project in a live urban environment.
The solution: MASS barrier for urban traffic management
As part of the temporary traffic management, Laing O’Rourke used MASS barrier to delineate the works, and to segregate and protect both road users and the workforce. Although the urban traffic management schemes were in low speed environments, the construction durations, nature and extent of the works meant that a robust barrier system was needed.
MASS barrier offers a flexible balance between conventional cones / unrestrained barrier systems and superior high containment alternatives.
MASS barrier traffic management alongside the Manchester Metrolink works
According to Richard Gamble, Project Engineer for Laing O’Rourke, choosing MASS (Multi Application Safety System) noticeably improved site security, with the interlinked 55kg steel bases able to withstand sustained vandalism. The vehicle roll-on roll-off stability of MASS in narrower road width situations means that, should an errant vehicle drive onto the base unit, the vehicle’s weight helps to stabilise the barrier during impact.
Laing O’Rourke chose MASS barrier based on previous experience with the product at Dublin Airport Terminal 2. Initial quantities on site at commencement were 3,500m, later increased by an additional 1,200m as demand for the system on site grew.
Close up of the interlinked MASS steel base units
The outcome: works protected in two vehicle impacts
The relative light weight and shape of MASS made storing, transporting and installation an easy operation. Two road traffic incidents occurred during the works where errant vehicles collided with the traffic management. In both cases the MASS barrier contained the vehicle and ensured that the construction site remained protected.
![Bus driving past MASS barriers and perimeter fencing on the Manchester Metrolink project]()
A bus passes MASS barriers and fencing protecting the Metrolink works
MASS was also used on a later section of the network – read our Manchester Metrolink Victoria Station case study.
