GRAHAM has landed the contract to build an estimated £74m project comprising a stretch of carriageway and two new bridges between Didcot and Culham in Oxfordshire for the county council.

The scheme is the third and final package in a programme of infrastructure works costing more than £330m that forms the Housing Infrastructure Fund 1 Didcot project.

Andrew Henry, contracts director at GRAHAM, said: 'The Didcot to Culham River crossing is a complex project, which is ideally suited to our expertise. It will involve a complete overhaul of the current infrastructure, which is no longer fit for purpose, to deliver vital improvement works that support an enhanced quality of living for residents.'

Consultant AECOM is also working on the project, which comprises a 3.6km stretch of single carriageway link road between the A4130 at Didcot and the A415 at Culham.

GRAHAM will also be responsible for new bridges over the Appleford Railway sidings and another over the River Thames, plus improvements to the A4130 Collett roundabout, a new priority junction with the B4016 west of Appleford.

The works also include new roundabouts connecting the link road with Appleford Road towards Sutton Courtenay and on the A415 Abingdon Road.

Cllr Liz Leffman, Oxfordshire County Council's cabinet member for highways construction and repair, said: 'These existing local bridges are old and not suitable for modern levels of traffic movement. They are often congested and subject to flooding in the winter months. This new crossing over the River Thames will help improve traffic flow, public transport journey times and reliability, and offer more resilience for public transport from flooding.'

GRAHAM has moved onto site, and construction is expected to last approximately two and a half years. The contractor is also building the £74m Clifton Hampden Bypass linking the A415 at Culham to the B4015 to the north of Clifton Hampden.

In March, the council appointed VolkerFitzpatrick to build the Didcot Science Bridge scheme, costing around £55m, comprising a bridge over the A4130, Great Western Main Line, and Milton Road connecting to a new link road through the former Didcot A Power Station.