£70m Birmingham road and runway race starts

Birmingham City Council is hoping for big savings by bundling a key road diversion contract with the long-awaited city airport runway extension job.

The A45 dual carriageway between Birmingham and Coventry needs to be diverted to allow room for the extension at the southern end of the runway.

It is hoped the plan to combine the two jobs could bring savings in mobilisation costs and other economies of scale, although the council will also ask firms to price the two jobs separately as part of the procurement process.

The new 2km section of road will include an upgraded carriageway and facilities for the future accommodation of public transportation infrastructure.

At the same time Birmingham Airport intends to extend its existing runway by approximately 400m.

This will allow passengers from the Midlands to use Birmingham Airport for long-haul trips rather than travel to Heathrow or Manchester to start their holidays.

The extension of the runway and associated infrastructure will also require revisions to the existing fuel farm, a new taxiway exit, and the diversion of services and watercourses.

Originally targeted for completion in time for the 2012 London Olympics, work is now expected to be completed in 2014 after delays in getting the project off the ground.

Each job has been estimated to cost between £28m and £35m by the client’s advisers.

Contractors have until 26 September to prequalify in time for invitations to tender to go out on 7 October.

The PQQ document can be accessed via the following link: http://www.birminghamairport.co.uk/A45RunwayExtension.htm