First tower in place for railway bridge over Windsor Road at Rouse Hill

The first tower for Sydney Metro’s railway bridge at Rouse Hill has been lifted into place in a precision operation.

Two large cranes lifted the 210 tonne tower on to the bridge deck over Windsor Road, before it was bolted into place.

The 29-metre tall steel tower was made in Western Sydney and delivered to Rouse Hill under police escort because of its size. It required a 55-metre long, 18-axle truck and trailer combination for the 17km trip.

Next, 16 steel cables will be installed from the tower to the bridge deck.

A second tower will be installed soon.

The top of the bridge towers will be 45-metres above road level once complete.

The landmark railway bridge, similar in design to Sydney’s Anzac Bridge, is an Australian first – a cable-stayed railway bridge built on a curve.

The Windsor Road bridge was a design solution to community feedback which means any future upgrade of the Windsor Road and Schofields Road intersection will not be impacted by the new metro railway.

The deck of the Sydney Metro railway bridge over Windsor Road at Rouse Hill is complete

The deck of the landmark Sydney Metro bridge over Windsor Road at Rouse Hill is in the air, bringing metro rail services one step closer.

Inspired by Sydney’s Anzac Bridge, the 270m long bridge is the first ever cable-stayed railway bridge on a curve built in Australia.

The deck is made of 88 massive concrete segments each weighing between 70 and 140 tonnes.

The delicate engineering operation to put them in place occurred 7 metres above ground and mainly at night, resulting in minimal disruption to local traffic.

More than 4,600 people have worked on the Skytrain project so far.

Over coming months, twin 45m bridge towers and steel cables will be installed.