Bridge may close for major repairs (From Warrington Guardian)

Bridge may close for major repairs

AGGREVATING disruption, infuriating queues and even closure could hamper motorists crossing Halton's traffic clogged bridge, transport chiefs have warned.

Major repairs on the colossal 44-year-old steel structure had been postponed, pending confirmation of the second bridge.

"If a decision on the new crossing goes back so far or the Government says 'no', work will have to be brought forward," said Alan West, operational director highways and transportation.

"Closures of two lanes for 24 hours, for weeks at a time," he explained would be necessary if the 24 'hangars' linking the deck to the arch have to be replaced.

Repainting the lower arch, scheduled for 2010, will see scaffolding erected and two lanes closed for up to 12 weeks.

"We need to strip the paint back to the bare metal and replace all the bits that have rusted away," explained Mr West. "You could walk on the footbridge now and grab chunks of it off. We are closely monitoring the situation."

As more than 90,000 vehicles thunder over the bridge every day, wear and tear will cost a staggering £20m to repair over the next 10 years.

Only one in five journeys stays within Halton.

Cllr Rob Polhill, board member for transportation, said: "In the future, the bridge would have to close for major repairs.

"This is a lifeline that joins two communities. We are predicting 120,000 vehicles a day by 2011 and peak time traffic will get worse.

"This bridge is well past its sell by date. We are very concerned that we may have to close it to do major repairs."

bjordan@worldgroup.co.uk