Closure of London Road bridge in Derby will lead to a year of disruption for drivers in Derby city centre
A VITAL road bridge into Derby city centre that is used by thousands of vehicles every day will close for nearly a year while it is replaced.
The bridge in London Road will be shut between Bateman Street and the entrance to the Rail Technical Centre from September until August next year.
The go-ahead for the work was confirmed by Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin. It comes after the Government pledged to stump up £4.4 million to help Derby City Council meet the scheme's costs of almost £7 million.
Chancellor George Osborne released the money as part of a nationwide attempt to kick-start the economy by undertaking a huge programme of infrastructure development.
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Due to its deteriorating condition, the current bridge – which runs over the Birmingham to Derby railway line – has a restriction, reducing the permitted weight of any vehicle travelling over it.
Mr McLoughlin said the replacement bridge would comply with national weight carrying standards to ensure all traffic could use it.
He said: "This scheme will remove the weight restrictions imposed on traffic using this bridge.
"If not sorted, the situation will simply get worse and eventually lead to closure of this important radial route into Derby."
He added the completed project would "ensure continued and improved access to the city centre and remove limits to the amount of development that could take place in the area".
A diversion will be put in place, taking traffic around Pride Parkway.
During the closure, a temporary footbridge will be provided to maintain access along London Road for pedestrians and cyclists.
A spokesman for Derby City Council said through-traffic would be diverted along the inner ring road and through Pride Park to the Ascot Drive roundabout.
She said: "London Road is one of the key radial routes between the inner and outer ring roads, and the closure of such a key route will inevitably lead to additional traffic on surrounding roads.
"The city council believes that the use of the planned diversion routes will keep the impact during the closure to a minimum."
Ray Wheatley, director of GB Willbond Ltd bathroom centre in London Road, said it would have a major impact.
He said: "Our trade will be hit massively. I knew this was coming but I didn't realise it would happen this quickly. If they divert traffic through Pride Park it will be an even bigger nightmare during peak periods than it is already."
8 Comments
by oscardoodle
Wednesday, March 20 2013, 5:53PM
“I find it hard to believe that with our current engineering expertise,materials and heavy lift technology that a replacement couldn't be assembled by the bridge in the rail yard and hoiked in to place in the space of maybe a month. When you see documentaries on TV of engineers in other countries moving seriously large and heavy bits of kit around, are our lot not capable of some ingenuity in providing a quicker solution?
Yours faithfully,
OscarDoodle,
failed Lego builder.”
by dianae
Wednesday, March 20 2013, 5:34PM
“Sandwich bars in area will see business boom for a year - all those construction workers ..”
by dianae
Wednesday, March 20 2013, 5:34PM
“At least the work will not be starting till Sept - after the inner ring road work will be completed. The effect on the A52/ Pride park junction is going to be horrible.
Coming into Derby the tailback for the Pride Park lane can go back as far as the city boundary - add in traffic that is avoiding London Rd for a whole year ... lovely.
Which company is getting the work? Will there be proper provison for construction vehicles and cars belonging to construction workers who want to park nearby?
The work is being done so HGVs can use it, HGVs cause a lot of damage to roads - inconveniencing other road users”
by rice98w
Wednesday, March 20 2013, 3:30PM
“This will have a massive impact on trade in the surrounding area. Why is it that Eddie Stobart can change a railway bridge in one NIGHT, yet it takes Derby City Council one YEAR? There are already major roadworks on the ringroad near cockpit island, and at the busy junction near Manor Road. Derby will be gridlocked for a while! I understand that maintainance and spending money on infrastucture is a good thing, but one must consider the impact on good local businesses that keep the economy going in the first place.”
by Tamas
Wednesday, March 20 2013, 3:00PM
“Well, I hope Sinfin Lane Bridge is next. It's in a terrible state and the traffic has increased immensely over the years. Especially heavy vehicles. And, if the proposed incinerator is built, it'll be a potential death trap.”
by Derby_born
Wednesday, March 20 2013, 2:47PM
“What dealays would we see if the bridge was allowed to deriorate to the point of collapse? I don't believe there us an alternative to getting this sorted out, once and for all. Better to see disruption now rather than a disaster if the bridge either collapses or becomes so dangerous that the road would have to close indefinitely.”
by DerbyBorn
Wednesday, March 20 2013, 12:12PM
“....also - if you walk under the railway bridge that takes the mainline over the Derwent behind Alvaston Park you will see that loads of metal has rusted off it recently.
We have an infrastructure that we inherited from the Victorian Ages - but we can't afford to maintain it - what hope do we have of replacing it?”
by DerbyBorn
Wednesday, March 20 2013, 9:21AM
“When I was a lad - I often saw the bridges over the Derby - Birmingham line being blasted and re-painted. Now the bridges over Sinfin Lane, Goodsmoor Road, Stenson Road are rusting terribly. The salt on the roads must be also causing problems. Are we delaying problems for the future to fix at great expense - rather than doing bit of preventative maintenance now?”