Debris from doomed Gateshead flyover hits a car
More regular safety checks for the condemned Gateshead Flyover have been promised, after a vehicle was hit by falling debris from the crumbling structure.
The Park Lane roundabout underneath the closed A167 Gateshead Highway flyover had to be shut for 12 hours last night to allow engineers to carry out concrete inspections on the elevated road.
It came after a driver reported that their vehicle had been damaged on Tuesday, after which debris was found on the road beneath the flyover.
The 1960s-built structure has been shut since last December, due to fears that it could be at risk of collapse because of crumbling concrete, and it is due for demolition.
After this week’s incident, however, Gateshead Council has now said it will increase its monitoring of the flyover and that more overnight closures of surrounding roads may be needed.
The Park Lane roundabout, at the busy junction of the A167 and the A184 Felling bypass, reopened at 6am on Wednesday morning.
A council spokesperson said: “Survey work was successfully completed over night, and the sections above the roundabout were checked very thoroughly.
“As we move towards demolition work beginning this autumn, we will further increase the frequency of our monitoring and this may need further overnight closures. We will always try to provide as much notice as possible.
“We apologise to those inconvenienced by yesterday’s closure, but as ever, public safety comes first.”
The council formally agreed to knock down the flyover in March this year, but it remains standing and no firm date has been set for the start of demolition works.
Last month, the popular Five Bridge skate park beneath the flyover also had to be shut down after an inspection uncovered “significant areas of concrete were loose directly above the skate park”.
Gateshead Council has set aside an £18 million budget for the demolition, while North East mayor Kim McGuinness has committed £2.5 million towards the works.
Anneliese Hutchinson, the local authority’s strategic director for economy, innovation, and growth, said on Tuesday that civic centre bosses “know this structure needs to come down as soon as possible and we are working hard to get the demolition programme finalised soon”.