myGeobrugg
Initial situation
The site is made up of a 6 - 15 metres high rock cutting comprised predominantly of sandstone adjacent to the railway line SPC8 in Belper, Derbyshire.
Since 2020, there have been three confirmed rockfall events, thankfully none of which infringed on track limits. Following a detailed geotechnical assessment of the site, which included rockfall modelling, it was found there was a moderate to high risk of rockfall across the site and it was recommended remediation measures be taken to mitigate future rockfall impacts.
Rockfall modelling indicated a maximum energy of 280 kJ of rockfall impact.
Description
The chosen solution was a 2 metre high GBE-500A-R rockfall barrier, 55 metres in length and with a post spacing of 11metres.
The use of a GBE-AR barrier meant there were no upslope ropes within the system and thus saved time during the works via a reduced number of holes that needed to be drilled, compared to a GBE-500A rockfall barrier.
Once the fence arrived, Geobrugg conducted a toolbox talk on-site, discussing the steps and common pitfalls during installation.
Initial works were carried out by QTS (contractor) on night shifts, and the final completion of the fence construction the following week on day shifts. Once the fence was completed a CONSIS-trained professional (Geobrugg) undertook a final acceptance inspection of the rockfall fence.
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