The Royal Canal Viaduct spans the Northern Line Railway and connects Connolly Station with the Maynooth Railway Line.
Two ROD projects feature in this year’s Association of Consulting Engineers of Ireland (ACEI) Engineering Excellence Awards shortlist. The Motorway Operations Control Centre has been shortlisted in the 'Project of the Year' category and the Royal Canal Premium Cycle Route Phase 2 project in the ‘Civil’ category.
The first nomination recognises the motorway operations control centre as a project that will support Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) in safeguarding the safety, resilience and sustainability of our road network. Constructed as part of the redevelopment and expansion of the existing M50 Dublin Tunnel Control Building, the control centre incorporates a new state-of-the-art control room equipped with the latest technology to allow real-time monitoring of the motorway network. A new incident management room, light-filled meeting rooms, offices and a modernised server room – designed to meet current and future needs - have also been provided, substantially increasing operational resilience and improving the working environment for staff.
Ensuring that critical 24/7/365 tunnel and motorway operations housed within the existing building remained operational at all times during the works represented the key constraint for the project team. The restricted nature of the site and the extensive array of existing underground services under and close to the extension footprint added further complexity.
ROD provided a range of services on the project, including project management, contract administration, and civil and structural design from planning and detailed design through to construction.
Shortlisted in the ‘Civil’ category, the Royal Canal Premium Cycle Route Phase 2 project recognises the National Transport Authority and Dublin City Council’s work in imaginatively repurposing a brownfield site and an underused section of the Royal Canal to deliver a critical piece of walking and cycling infrastructure for Dublin. The project forms an integral part of the Royal Canal Greenway, which aims to provide a 26km off-road cycling and walking route from Dublin City Centre at North Wall Quay to Maynooth. It also forms part of the Galway to Dublin Cycle Route, a dedicated coast-to-coast cycleway linking Dublin to Galway and stretching 270km across the country.
The project posed several challenges for the design team, including the constrained nature of the site, sensitive location, presence of active railway lines requiring the scheme to span over and below existing railway infrastructure and an historic boundary wall running along the linear park.
ROD was involved in the full project lifecycle from inception through to completion, including undertaking the options selection report in conjunction with the council in 2012, and helping secure Part VIII planning approval for the scheme in 2015.
The award winners will be announced on Friday 17 September.
