TJ Transport win M49 haulage contract

TJ Transport has won a contract to transport more than 350,000 tonnes of aggregates to the site of the M49 Avonmouth junction near Bristol. TJ’s haulage services will be used for at least the next six months, with 15-20 lorry loads of materials being delivered every day.

TJ was awarded the contract by civil engineering company MJ Church, on behalf of contractors Galliford Try Plc and Highways England. TJ has worked with MJ Church in the past and put in a bid for the haulage work that they knew would be required for this type and scale of project.

TJ will be supplying 350,000 tonnes of fill material plus other aggregates during the project. TJ will collect the materials from local quarries by prior arrangement and deliver them to the project site as and when required.

MJ Church operates a paperless electronic ticketing system, which TJ access via a tablet to ensure the smooth running of the job.

One of the reasons TJ were selected to undertake the haulage for the project was because they offer a one-call service to get 15-20 lorry loads of materials per day, rather than the client having to use several smaller companies to achieve the same outcome. This is a huge benefit to MJ Church due to the admin time that will be saved over the course of the project.

TJ Transport Supervisor Kevin Longland said: “This is a high profile job for Highways England so we must ensure that the service and timings we provide are spot on and they will be. We’ll face challenges over the next six months, but we will overcome whatever is thrown at us to ensure that project is delivered on time and on budget.”

The first challenge presented itself this week when adverse weather slowed down work on the project, but TJ went above and beyond to ensure that the materials arrived on schedule.

The TJ Transport team’s organisational skills are essential when it comes to timing the whereabouts of the lorries throughout the day. As up to 20 lorry loads need to be transported from the quarry to the construction site every day, TJ must ensure the flow of lorries is consistent to prevent overcrowding coming in and out of the quarry.

The M49 Avonmouth junction project commenced in December 2017, with completion expected by December 2019. Highways England have committed, along with Bristol City Council and South Gloucestershire Council, to unlocking the economic potential of the Avonmouth Severnside Enterprise Area. It’s an important regional employment site and the largest brownfield site in Western Europe. The site is expected to attract new economic activity and associated employment in diverse sectors including energy generation, waste management, manufacturing, warehousing and distribution.

As the port of Avonmouth and the Avonmouth Severnside Enterprise Area to the west of Bristol currently have no direct access to the M49, it has hindered proposals to support economic growth in the area. The M49 junction will open up these areas, ease congestion and contribute to the economic growth of the region.

The new junction is located to the south of the Western Approach Distribution Park and west of the village of Easter Compton. The design features a two-bridge junction. It uses the existing bridge at Farm Lane with a second bridge built immediately next to it. The two bridges are incorporated into a single roundabout that spans the motorway.

New access and exit slip roads will be built on both sides of the motorway junction so that it connects fully with both northbound and southbound traffic. The new bridge being built over the M49 will include a dedicated lane for walkers, cyclists and other users.

Find out more about TJ’s haulage services today.