Emergency repairs approved to Pero's Bridge in Bristol
Emergency repairs to Pero’s Bridge have been approved by Bristol City Council
Emergency repairs to Pero’s Bridge have been approved by Bristol City Council.
But there is no more money for the urgent works than previously agreed for a major maintenance programme to keep it operating, so any extra funding needed would have to be found from somewhere.
The bridge on the Floating Harbour, between Queen Square and Millennium Square, failed a stress test lift in August, leaving the middle section broken and jammed at an awkward angle.
Last March the harbour committee voted to spend £1.35million on repairs amid longstanding concerns about the structure, which was later topped up with £160,000 from another council budget.
Now the authority has appointed marine salvage contractor KML to remove all the bridge spans as soon as possible and take them by barge to Albion Dry Dock for repairs and refurbishment.
The decision was taken by Bristol City Council executive director of growth and regeneration John Smith as an urgent matter which bypassed putting the works out to competitive tender because of the time that would take while the bridge remains shut and is deemed a danger to pedestrians and vessels.
A decision notice on the organisation’s website said: “Due to the immediate safety risks presented by the damaged structure, the ongoing closure of a strategic harbour navigation route and the requirement to prevent further deterioration of the bridge, the removal works constitute an ‘extreme and unavoidable urgency’.
“There is insufficient time to undertake a full competitive procurement process without materially increasing operational, safety and financial risks.
“It is therefore proposed to appoint KML Limited, a specialist marine salvage contractor with the expertise, equipment and availability required to undertake these works safely and within the required timescales, through the council’s emergency procurement for urgent work provisions.”
The notice said the award was based on an ‘extreme and unavoidable urgency arising from unforeseeable events’ which were ‘not attributable to the council’.
It said: “The costs associated with this emergency removal operation will be met from the existing approved Pero’s Bridge repairs capital project budget.
“The emergency works will reduce the funding currently available for the wider refurbishment project and any resultant funding shortfall required to complete the repairs will be the subject of a future approval process.”
The bridge became known for couples attaching ‘love locks’ to its railings as a sign of their commitment to each other, but the extra weight put strain on its mechanisms and hydraulics, so the padlocks were removed in July last year when major structural problems were identified.
That led to a no-lift notice and a ban on police horses crossing the bridge.