Hillsborough Car Park

HILLSBOROUGH CASTLE VISITOR CAR PARK 

Client: Historic Royal Palaces 

Location: Hillsborough Castle, Co Down

Value: 

This scheme was part of a £20m upgrade of visitor facilities at Hillsborough Castle, with Breedon appointed as Principal Contractor to construct the new car park to facilitate visitor numbers, as the Castle was opened to the public as a tourist attraction. As part of this project, a new access was constructed directly from the A1 Belfast-Dublin carriageway, to divert traffic out of the village of Hillsborough. The Breedon Project Team worked closely with the Clients Representatives to protect the heritage of this famous site and ensure minimal disruption of the castle’s operations and the surrounding communities. Historical items including existing iron and railway gates on the site were taken down for refurbishment and reuse on the castle grounds.  

Key deliverables for the project included:  

• Site clearance with tree protection fencing works 
• Earthworks cut and fill operations  
• Construction on high quality architectural pavements including: 
  • Self-binding gravel footpaths and vehicular areas finished with Ballylusk gravel  
  • Reinforced grass areas utilising the Glopla paving system 
  • Reinforced gravel areas utilising Glopla gravel protection system finished in Ballylusk gravel 
• Series of internal roads and parking areas 
• Parking bay markers, with bespoke hardwood ‘buttons’ made to sit within Glopla paving. 
• Installation of 2.5km of drainage network. 
• 1.6km of granite kerbs, 600m fettled Yorkstone edgings and flush Yorkstone heel kerb. 
• 1500m2 exposed aggregate (Ballylusk) paving, 175mm thick air entrained exposed aggregate concrete with layer of A393 mesh. 
• Bespoke furniture and signage including circular benches to fit around trees, oak signage posts, cleft timber fencing and trip rail, hardwood double vehicular gates