Transforming Bradford

We are playing a key role in transforming the city of Bradford by making it easier for people to walk, cycle and use public transport.

Elevating Bradford

The City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council aspires to become the UK’s leading clean growth district. To achieve this, the Council is modernising the city's transport infrastructure and city centre environment.

To meet local and national carbon reduction targets and set the stage for the City of Culture 2025, the Council appointed Balfour Beatty via the SCAPE Civil Engineering framework to deliver a series of projects, which are funded through West Yorkshire Combined Authority's Transforming Cities Fund programme. The projects are:

City Centre Walking and Cycling Improvements Scheme

We’re designing and creating new pedestrian spaces across large areas of the city centre and major roads like Hall Ings. New green spaces and sustainable urban drainage systems will be built to manage rainwater, prevent flooding, as well as mitigate against extreme weather caused by the impacts of climate change and improve biodiversity.

£55 million

combined project value

Three

projects delivered as one

West Bradford Cycle Superhighway Extension

Our teams are designing and building a dedicated, segregated cycle route between Bradford city centre and Thornton village that will better connect Bradford Royal Infirmary and Queensbury. The route, which will incorporate several green spaces to improve the environment, will be built in two phases to ensure the busier part of the route is ready for Bradford’s UK City of Culture 2025.

South Bradford Targeted Bus Measures

We’re carrying out targeted bus priority measures along the A641 to reduce travel times, improve reliability and enhance the operation of the guided bus way.

As well as helping to ease congestion and improve air quality, the four projects will create a more accessible and safer city for pedestrians and cyclists alongside promoting better physical and mental wellbeing.

One team, one goal

The early contractor engagement that the SCAPE Civil Engineering framework facilitates has been pivotal in ensuring that we have developed a common understanding of the three projects and their critical success factors.

Working together as one team, from the implementation stages of the projects, we have co-developed solutions with the Council and design partners and applied best practice to ensure each of the complex projects can be constructed safely and efficiently whilst bringing the Council’s vision for the city to life.

Creating a positive and sustainable legacy

To ensure that we leave a positive legacy and a sustainable impact for the city, our social impact team has developed a bespoke social impact plan, mapped against agreed ‘Themes Outcomes and Measures’ (TOMs), to effectively measure and report on social value performance. These include:

  • School engagement hours
  • Apprenticeship weeks
  • Mentoring to unemployed groups
  • Work experience weeks (including T-levels)
  • Community volunteering hours
  • Savings in carbon emissions
  • Environmental volunteering hours

To ensure that we maximise social value and successfully deliver against the TOMs, we are:

  • Working with Skills House Bradford to ensure that people living within the city can access the range of career opportunities we have available across all four projects
  • Offering a range of work experience and apprenticeship opportunities to inspire and promote careers in construction
  • Upskilling students and lecturers at Bradford College on the latest innovation and digital tools and software to support students learning journeys
  • Attending STEMFest Yorkshire and Humber to promote careers in construction to 3,000 year 7, year 8 and year 9 secondary school pupils
  • Working with Participate to support a range of volunteering opportunities with individuals, charities and social enterprises across the city in preparation for the City of Culture 2025

Reducing environmental impact

To support the Council with the creation of a cleaner and more sustainable city, our teams have been focused on reducing construction waste and carbon emissions. Our initiatives include:

  • Reusing existing paving throughout the city
  • Recycling demolition waste into useable aggregates
  • Zero and low emission vehicles and plant
  • Low temperature asphalt that embodies 20% less carbon than traditional asphalt
  • Utilising EcoSense cabins and EcoNet technology