Survey work starts at site of Liverpool's proposed new cruise terminal

A jack-up platform has been moved into position to provide samples to establish the strength of the riverbed at the site next to the west coast UK city’s existing Cruise Terminal.

Geologists and support crew will be drilling a total of seven boreholes into the bedrock beneath the Mersey extracting and testing rock samples. Simultaneously, a further seven boreholes are planned shoreside in an area which will accommodate ancillary facilities for the planned new £50m ($66m)Terminal.

‘The results for both river and land tests will then determine the design of the piled foundations for the terminal,’ a spokesman for developers Liverpool City Council told Seatrade Cruise News.

The investigation works are supervised by AECOM Ltd. and performed by Fugro GeoServices Ltd.

Andrew Merritt, Engineering Geologist with AECOM Ltd, supervising the investigation said: ‘It is a pleasure to be involved in such a prestigious and long-awaited project.

‘Similarly, it is a privilege to work closely with colleagues at Liverpool City Council to assist them in fulfilling their wishes to regenerate one of the city’s great landmarks.’

Liverpool City Council recently appointed building and civil engineering contractors McLaughlin & Harvey to carry out the first stage of a two stage design and build contract.

A two stage design

The first stage consists of supporting the council’s appointed design team, led by Ramboll UK, to finalise the design and construction method.

‘They will also establish the final construction costs by inviting competitive sub-contract prices for each package of works in advance of the second stage main contract award, whilst designing out construction risks,’ added the city spokesman.

The main contract works involve the construction on a suspended deck structure and the erection of a vehicle linkspan bridge and pedestrian bridge/walkway to connect the new terminal to the existing pontoons used to berth ships.

Site preparation work is due to start in the autumn, and the city has indicated the new terminal could be open by mid-2020.