MP urges the government to provide funding for two bridges in Cumbria
Underbarrow and Brigsteer bridges were closed by in the council in June
A South Cumbrian MP has urged the government to provide emergency funding to reopen two bridges that have been closed for over six months.
Underbarrow and Brigsteer bridges were closed by Westmorland and Furness Council on June 12 as a precautionary measure after an external expert report found ‘structural concerns’.
In Parliament, MP for Westmorland and Lonsdale Tim Farron called on the Secretary of State for Transport to meet representatives from Westmorland and Furness Council as a matter of ‘urgency’ to discuss the repair of the bridges over the A591.
Mr Farron said:
“Hundreds of local authority roads across the country include half-joint bridges built in the 1960s and 1970s that are now dangerously unsafe.
“They include the Brigsteer Road and Underbarrow Road bridges leading out of Kendal, which have been closed for the last six months, causing great inconvenience to the local community.
“They were built with government funding 50 or 60 years ago, but local councils are unable to replace them with the funds available to them now.
“Will the Secretary of State meet representatives of Westmorland and Furness council as a matter of urgency, so that the bridges can be reopened and our communities can be reconnected quickly.”
In response the Secretary of State for Transport Heidi Alexander said she would ask the Minister for Future Roads, Lilian Greenwood, to have a meeting with the council.
Ms Alexander added:
“However, the additional money that we have provided, and the individual allocations that were announced before Christmas, can be used not just for road maintenance, but for bridges and pavements.”
The Department for Transport announced in December that Westmorland and Furness Council will receive a highways maintenance allocation of £31.05 million in the 2025/26 financial year.
The funding consists of a baseline amount of £22.73 million as well as £8.33 million in new funding for the upcoming financial year, according to government figures.
According to the government the funding has built-in incentives with 25 per cent of this uplift held back until authorities have shown that they are delivering.
The council has said possible short-term solutions include propping the bridge at half-joint locations, demolishing the bridges and installing temporary ones.
Other options consist of propping the current bridges and installing temporary bridges, supporting the structure from above the bridge and more sophisticated analysis of the bridges.
In October the council said if assessments and checks provide positive results, it is anticipated it may be possible for both Underbarrow and Brigsteer bridges to reopen to light vehicles and pedestrians in early 2025.
Westmorland and Furness Council has been contacted for comment.