Burway Bridge in Ludlow: work to start

Burway Bridge in Ludlow is due to close to traffic and pedestrians at 6.30am next Monday (21 April) to enable work to start in earnest on building a new bridge.

Since the sudden collapse of the old Burway Bridge during last summer’s exceptionally heavy flooding, traffic into Ludlow along Coronation Avenue has been carried by a temporary, single lane bridge. Next week work will start to remove this, and build a new two-lane bridge.

Unfortunately, in order to carry out the work it will be necessary to close Coronation Avenue (the B4361) to traffic and pedestrians for the first part of the construction period. This closure starts on Monday, and is expected to remain in place until the end of September, when the road is due to be reopened 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 Road and Sheet Road.

Because of a low headroom bridge over Sheet Road, outbound high vehicles will be diverted to the A49 via Gravel Hill and Henley Road.

In addition to the signing of diversion routes for incoming traffic, local traffic from Bromfield Road in the vicinity of the Leisure Centre will be signed up New Road to join the main diversion route at Gravel Hill.

When the bridge is closed, pedestrians wishing to use Coronation Avenue will be diverted via Lower Corve Street and Bromfield Road, and the town end of Lower Corve Street will remain closed for the duration of the work.

In an attempt to improve the flow of traffic along Gravel Hill when the bridge is closed, yellow lines were installed in places last Sunday to restrict parking. These will become legally enforceable on Monday.

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

The new bridge is expected to cost £900,000, and the work is expected to finish in mid-December 2008.

18 April 2008