The arch culvert had been constructed form solid pressed clay bricks as part of the former south coast railway, the exact age of the structure is unknown however it is believed to be over 125 years old based on the type and method of construction used.
It was constructed in the late 1800s as part of the historic railway line that was built to service the Illawarra and South Coast Region.
Cadifern Civil appreciated the opportunity to work collaboratively with Council on this project by bringing our high level of expertise to deliver a successful outcome
Cadifern was engaged by Wollongong City Council to provide embankment stabilization works and rehabilitation solutions to the brick arch culvert located on Chellow Dene Avenue, Stanwell-Park.
The brick arch itself is located underneath Chellow Dene Ave. and travels some 24m.
Since 2017 the brick arch culvert has raised community concerns surrounding the embankment stability due to subsidence around the culvert after significant damage was observed to the headwall and internal brick arch culvert.
The overall aim of the project was repair and restore the culvert including a new headwall to match the aesthetic of the heritage feel of the culvert and to stabilize the embankment through localized regrading works at the crest along with the installation of structural wire mesh and platypus anchors across the embankment.
Those above solutions created long term slope improvement and safety to the community.
Our team prepared the foundation from the property boundary up to the existing culvert outlet, removing all unsuitable materials to a foundation bearing capacity of 100 kPA.
The culvert was structurally renewed by installing a wound-in-place liner “Rib Loc Ribline” followed by grouting of the liner annulus and further injection grouting to stabilize and fill any further voids in the soils within the zone of influence of the culvert.
There were many significant site constraints and challenges faced by Cadifern on this project including environmental, heritage, and safety, among others;
We successfully overcame all of these during construction to deliver the project to Wollongong Council in October of 2020 within programme, quality, and budget.