A team from Jackson Civil Engineering will feature in a battle against time in tomorrow’s final episode of a six-part TV series taking a behind-the-scenes look at the operation of the M25.

East Anglian Daily Times: The 90-tonne crane used by Jackson Civil Engineering at part of work to replace an expansion joint on a viaduct on the M25 motorwayThe 90-tonne crane used by Jackson Civil Engineering at part of work to replace an expansion joint on a viaduct on the M25 motorway (Image: Archant)

The show, Britain’s Busiest Motorway, has revealed the usually hidden army of traffic controllers, patrol officers, engineers and maintenance workers who work around the clock to keep traffic moving on the London orbital motorway, which stretches 117 miles around the capital and is used for 73m journeys a year.

The final episode, which airs on Tuesday, March 28, at 7.30pm, will feature Jackson project manager Ryan Smith and his team as they work through the night with a 90-tonne crane as part of a scheme to replace an expansion joint on the New Haw Viaduct, between Junctions 10-11 of the M25.

The work involves a night-time closure of the motorway, from 10pm until 6am, represeting a race against time to get the road open again in time for the morning rush hour.

Jackson Civil Engineering, which is based in Ipswich and has seven offices around the country, has worked for M25 Operators Connect Plus and Connect Plus Services since 2009.

East Anglian Daily Times: The Jackson Civil Engineering team at work on the M25.The Jackson Civil Engineering team at work on the M25. (Image: Archant)

Expansion joints allows structures such as the New Haw Viaduct to expand and contract with changes in temperature and load, but require replacement every 40 years or so.

Thanks to an award-winning working method developed by Jackson, the installation of temporary ramps on the road surface allows traffic to flow freely over the structure while work to remove the old joints is carried out from below.

Whilst in situ on the New Haw Viaduct, 30.2m vehicles drove over the ramps, their drivers largely unaware of their presence, or indeed the work going on underneath them.

The ramps have already been used on similar projects on the QEII Bridge and the Gade Valley Viaduct, and there are plans to re-use them on a further 25 projects in the future.

Richard Neall, chief executive of Jackson Civil Engineering, said: “The M25 is used for four million journeys each day, and we have teams working around the clock on projects designed to keep traffic moving.

“We’re all too aware of people’s frustrations at being caught up in road works, but we hope this behind-the-scenes documentary will go some way to explain what we’re actually doing when we close a road.”

Jackson Civil Engineering is the largest operating division of Suffolk-based One Group Construction, which also includes SEH BAC, SEH French, Emmitt Plant, SEH Ipswich, SEH Asphalt and SEH Commercial.