Streetlight collapses on M3

[Nicholas]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-h ... e-50110036

Surely there are checks to ensure this sort of thing shouldn't happen? It's led to most of the motorway being closed all day today due to emergency checks (and assume the removal of further columns), with only limited access available from the M3 <> M27 W.

[jervi]

What a silly streetlight.

[Johnathan404]

I was mistaken. I thought it was the underpass.

I'm confused about how a street light can fall at 17:40 on the M3 on a Friday evening and so little be said about it until now? Looking back through the tweets, ROMANSE reported it as "one lane closed due to an RTI" and Wave 105 more accurately called it "an obstruction".

[Bryn666]

Ahhh it's the column type that is known for eventual structural failure due to fatigue cracking.

That's a bad look for HE then.

[Patrick Harper]

Hopefully they saved the four-year-old lantern.

[Nwallace]

Something similar happened on the Tay Road Bridge a few years back, though that was during a wind closure.
Could re open the bridge until the wind had dropped and a number of columns removed following inspection IIRC.

[novaecosse]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-h ... e-50110036

Surely there are checks to ensure this sort of thing shouldn't happen? It's led to most of the motorway being closed all day today due to emergency checks (and assume the removal of further columns), with only limited access available from the M3 <> M27 W.

Highways England released a Safety Alert for this recently, which I presume was the same site.

http://www.highwayssafetyhub.com/upload ... ailure.pdf

A 12m steel lighting column collapsed within the central reservation of the motorway. Fortunately, no harm was caused.
The cause of failure was due to extensive internal corrosion just below ground level. Subsequent inspections identified and removed a further 69 columns (from 320) with similar defects at or below ground level, at risk of collapse.

[novaecosse]

Something similar happened on the Tay Road Bridge a few years back, though that was during a wind closure.
Could re open the bridge until the wind had dropped and a number of columns removed following inspection IIRC.

If memory serves, the columns which failed had been replaced when Torith (remember them) refurbished the centre walkway in the late 90’s.

I believe there was an issue with the base plates as the columns are surface mounted, the new columns were installed in 2008/9 by Tayside Contracts.

[Bendo]

Something similar happened on the Tay Road Bridge a few years back, though that was during a wind closure.
Could re open the bridge until the wind had dropped and a number of columns removed following inspection IIRC.

Similar happened on the Mersey Gateway last year. although just the top bits not the column collapsing. Pretty poor for a 3 year old bridge.https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/li ... n-16024686

[Britain]

Something similar happened on the Tay Road Bridge a few years back, though that was during a wind closure.
Could re open the bridge until the wind had dropped and a number of columns removed following inspection IIRC.

Similar happened on the Mersey Gateway last year. although just the top bits not the column collapsing. Pretty poor for a 3 year old bridge.https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/li ... n-16024686

So that explains why there are roadworks on that bridge seemingly most nights, usually with inadequate warning of the approach lanes ending.

[Brenley Corner]

And now one goes over on the M20: https://www.kentlive.news/news/kent-new ... rm-3828149

[Bryn666]

And now one goes over on the M20: https://www.kentlive.news/news/kent-new ... rm-3828149

These columns are on flange plates bolted to the concrete rather than in dug foundations, so it looks like a shear failure of the bolts holding the column in place has occurred. Bit worrying for columns that are only 25 years old at most.

[StockburyRoundabout]

And now one goes over on the M20: https://www.kentlive.news/news/kent-new ... rm-3828149

These columns are on flange plates bolted to the concrete rather than in dug foundations, so it looks like a shear failure of the bolts holding the column in place has occurred. Bit worrying for columns that are only 25 years old at most.

They are about 27 years old.

They were installed in 1993 during widening (although there are some like-for-like replacements in the last few years).

[stefan]

Highway england did the same on the M6 between J29-J30 Lancashire due to the columns being old and also flange plated.