Bus stop in Ilpendam (NL) provided with barrier-free accessible temporary pedestrian bridge
In Ilpendam, contractor Van Gelder is improving the accessibility of the Waterland region by constructing a rush-hour bus lane between Purmerend and Ilpendam (N235). To keep the bus stops accessible to every user during the construction of a pedestrian tunnel, Van Gelder has opted for a fully accessible RECO pedestrian underpass. In addition, the walkway prevents Van Gelder from being hindered by passenger flows during its work.
Temporary lifts for the passengers of 1,200 buses per day
For the final client (the Province of North Holland), Van Gelder had two important conditions; create barrier-free accessibility for travellers to the bus stops and have the shortest possible interruption to bus traffic. Per 24 hours, 1,200 buses use this route. The traverse has been pre-assembled by RECO at its site in Koudekerk aan de Rijn. The stair towers with 2 heavy-duty towers were also installed prior to the hoisting work. To hoist the temporary pedestrian bridge, bus traffic only needed to be blocked for a period of 1½ hours. Subsequently, the 2 RECO PP passenger lifts were hoisted. During hoisting, buses from both directions could continue to use a single available lane. This caused minimum disruption to bus traffic.
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Limited space for the temporary pedestrian bridge
The N235 is wedged in between the Noordhollandsch Kanaal and Ilpendam. As a result, the space available for the traverse was very limited. This was partly due to the fact that an extra lane had to be temporarily installed. In spite of this, it was possible to erect the RECO traverse with stair towers and temporary passenger lifts on bus stop mounds. The temporary RECO PP passenger lifts have a shaft area of only 7.25m2, which means that they take up very little space compared to, for example, a ramp.
Foundation of tube piles
Given the limited space available, a foundation of tubular piles was chosen for the RECO PP passenger lifts. RECO's partner Van`t Wout Funderingstechniek from Waddinxveen drove these prior to assembly. After the assembly of the RECO PP lifts was completed on Sunday, both lifts were subsequently inspected by the Lift Institute on Monday morning. "We are very pleased with the speed with which RECO installed the required equipment," says Maikel Vlietman, Van Gelder's foreman. "This has caused us hardly any inconvenience to our own operations. But the most important thing for us is that the residents of Ilpendam can take the bus unhindered during our work".