Crumbling bridge is set to be replaced (From Worcester News)

Crumbling bridge is set to be replaced

3:30pm Saturday 11th February 2012 in News By David Paine, @davidpaineWN #worcsnews

A CRUMBLING bridge and viaduct in a county town will be completely replaced instead of repaired – and the work will only take 10 weeks to complete.

Previous estimates suggested it could take a year to refurbish Evesham’s Abbey Bridge and viaduct, which has been assessed as structurally unsafe.

While there will undoubtedly be disruption for residents and businesses while the work takes place, transport chiefs hope the shorter timeframe will be of some comfort to traders.

Councillor John Smith, Worcestershire County Council’s cabinet member for highways and transport who also represents the Evesham North West ward, said: “Obviously, there is going to be disruption during the closure but we will work with partners and the business community to support people during what will be a difficult period. Ten weeks is far better than 12 months.”

Councillor Simon Geraghty, cabinet member for planning, economy and performance, said: “Massively reducing the time is so important to the local economy.”

The Abbey Bridge is an essential transport link in and out of the town and surrounding areas.

A vehicle weight restriction is currently in place, resulting in HGVs being diverted onto the A46 bypass.

We previously reported that the Government agreed to put £8.6 million towards the bridge project following a successful bid for funds by council officers. At County Hall on Thursday, cabinet members agreed to add the extra £4 million needed to carry out the work, which is due to take place next year.

The contract for the work has been awarded to Hochtief and John Hobbs, director of environmental services, said the timeframe had been dramatically reduced because the council had taken a step back from the design process.

He said: “You can attribute the reduction in the period of closure to the contractor’s imagination it brought to the design proposal to build the structure around the current one and take it away.

“It’s the way forward. It’s what they do out in the real world and so we’ve adopted that method.”

While the bridge will be closed to traffic when work takes place, it is hoped that walkers, cyclists and mobility scooters will be able to make their way across at all times.