Work set to start on new Burway Bridge¸ Ludlow

On 26 March 2008, Shropshire County Council will be holding a public exhibition in Ludlow to explain the proposals for the replacement of Burway Bridge.

The exhibition will be held in The Refectory, Ludlow College, Castle Square, Ludlow and will be open to the public from 10.30am until 1pm, 2pm until 5pm and 6pm until 9pm.

Work to build the new bridge, which carries Coronation Avenue over the River Corve in Ludlow, is programmed to start on 14 April 2008 and is expected to last until December 2008.

This new bridge will replace the original Burway Bridge which collapsed on 26 June 2007 during exceptionally heavy flooding, leaving a 16 metre wide breach in one of the main routes into Ludlow.

The new bridge has been designed to cater for floods specified by the Environment Agency and will have a span of 21 metres which is over twice as long as that of the old bridge.

Unfortunately, in order to carry out the work it will be necessary to close the B4361, Coronation Avenue to traffic and pedestrians for part of the construction period. This closure is programmed to start on 21 April 2008 and is expected to remain in place until the end of September 2008, when the road will be re-opened under traffic light control.

When the bridge is closed, traffic into Ludlow town centre from the north will be diverted along the A49 to the Henley Road Roundabout, then into town along Henley Road, Gravel Hill and Station Drive.

With the exception of high vehicles, traffic out of the town will be signed to the A49 along Station Drive and Sheet Road. Because of a low headroom bridge over Sheet Road, high vehicles will be directed to the A49 via Gravel Hill and Henley Road.

In addition to the signing of diversion routes for incoming traffic, local traffic from the vicinity of the Leisure Centre and the Ludlow Church of England School will be signed up New Road to join the main diversion route at Gravel Hill. It is not proposed to divert traffic along any other local roads.

When the bridge is closed, pedestrians wishing to use Coronation Avenue will be diverted via Lower Corve Street and Bromfield Road.

The town end of Lower Corve Street will also be closed for the duration of the work. This is considered necessary for safety reasons.

John Williams, Shropshire County Council’s principal bridge engineer, said: “It is appreciated that the work will cause some inconvenience and disruption and that some people are naturally concerned. We will do all that we reasonably can to keep the road closure to a minimum and open the road early. We will also be erecting signs on the approaches to both Ludlow and the bridge advertising that businesses in Ludlow remain open for business as usual”.

In addition to the public exhibition, the County Council will be holding a public meeting in Ludlow to explain and discuss the proposed road closures and traffic diversions. This will be held at the Bishops Mascall Centre, Lower Galdeford, Ludlow at 7pm on Wednesday 19 March 2008.

The new bridge is expected to cost in the region of £900,000.

3 March 2008