Massive bridge project spanning Kilkenny and Wexford wins top international award
A huge infrastructure project linking Kilkenny and Wexford has won a prestigious international engineering award.
The Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Bridge, the longest bridge in Ireland, has been awarded the 2021 International Association of Bridge and Structural Engineering (IABSE) Outstanding Structure Award.
Part of the strategic N25 New Ross Bypass, the win marks the first time an Irish project has secured the prestigious global award for the most remarkable, innovative and creative structures.
Recognised in the ‘Bridge or Other Infrastructures’ category, the Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Bridge pushed the boundaries for the span of concrete extrados bridges.
Constructed by the BAM Dragados JV, the outstanding structure, Ireland’s longest bridge at 887m in length, holds a world record – at 230m each, its two main spans are the longest post-tensioned concrete spans in the world.
The Outstanding Structure Award recognises the innovative teamwork of Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII), Wexford and Kilkenny County Councils, contractors BAM and Dragados, the designers Arup and Carlos Fernandez Casado (CFC), and technical advisors for the scheme Mott MacDonald.
BAM Ireland CEO Theo Cullinane said of the achievement: “We are delighted that the bridge has been internationally recognised for its engineering excellence and are we very proud to have built such an iconic structure.
“Congratulations to Tadhg Lucey (COO BAM Civil) and all the project team for their exceptional hard work in delivering this outstanding piece of infrastructure,” Mr Cullinane added.
