Traffic backlog in Ramsgate due to transformer under escort to Richborough and road closure

The load coming from the Port Photo Dave Stillman

A large load, being escorted by police,  caused a temporary backlog of traffic in Nethercourt, Canterbury Road East, heading to the A256 this morning (September 25).

The load is the first of four transformers delivered at Ramsgate Port and headed to the former Richborough Towers site as part of the  Nemo Link project – the laying of high voltage electricity cables under the sea between the former Ricborough Towers site and Herdersbrug in Belgium.

Arriving at Port Photo Mark Stanford

A second transformer is due to be transported tomorrow (September 26).

The road is on a rolling closure between A299 Lord of the Manor Roundabout and A256 Richborough Way today and again tomorrow – expected to be between 10am and 11.15am. There is no alternative route but the road will be reopened at each junction as the load passes through, meaning minimal disruption. Bus services have been notified.

As part of the converter station construction at the Richborough Power Station site, the Nemo team will be taking delivery of four electrical transformers.

The transformers arrive from Nuremberg, via Rotterdam, into Ramsgate with the first now being transported to the site, the second tomorrow, the third following in November/December and the fourth in early 2018.

Due to their size, the delivery vehicle route has been agreed with the local highway authority.

 

The Nemo Link project involves subsea cables coming ashore at the service station area at Pegwell Bay, close to where the Thanet Offshore Wind Farm cables come ashore. Once onshore, the underground cables will be routed through the Pegwell Bay Country Park and beneath the road from BayPoint Sports Club to the Richborough site.

The aim is to provide the UK and Belgium  improved reliability and access to electricity.

After their arrival in Ramsgate, each transformer will be loaded onto a flatbed truck and driven to the Converter Station site.