THE PORT of Hobart is facilitating the arrival and movement of parts for a major bridge construction project in Tasmania.

Six barges that will form part of a temporary bridge north of Hobart arrived at the port on BigLift heavy load carrier Happy Star.

The barges are in addition to six other barges that were floated into place near the causeway earlier this year.

The temporary bridge aims to enable the construction of the new Bridgewater Bridge which, according to the state government, is Tasmania’s largest-ever transport infrastructure project.

TasPorts said Happy Star will use heavy-lift cranes to lift the barges for transfer to the Bridgewater site. The lightship barges weigh 100 tonnes, 447 tonnes and 580 tonnes.

Two other vessels have brought bridge support pylons to Port of Hobart. The pylons are being stored in the Mac04 yard for transit for the Bridgewater site in the coming months.

Deputy harbour master Andrew Shelverton said the operation required significant planning for the lay-up, cargo unloading, storage and barge transit up the Derwent River.

“The latest barges to arrive – named after contractor McConnell Dowell’s values – were between 43.5-metres-long to 55.5-metres-long,” he said.

“Because of their length (longer than 35 metres) they require a pilot on board for their transfer through the Port of Hobart, via the Tasman Bridge to the northern port limit which is on the southern side of the Bowen Bridge where after the pilot will disembark and attached tugs assist with the remainder of the trip to the Bridgewater site.”

Once at the Bridgewater site, the barges will be connected end-to-end and linked to a temporary steel-framed bridge that will be built across the river Derwent.

The temporary bridge is designed to allow contractors to move materials and equipment, including large cranes and construction vehicles, across the river to build the new bridge’s foundations and structure without interrupting traffic on the existing Bridgewater Bridge.

The temporary bridge will be removed once the new bridge is completed. The new bridge is expected to be fully operational by 2025.