Work has begun on repairing an historic bridge in the centre of Oxford, with traffic restrictions in place while the work continues.
Work has begun on repairing an historic bridge in the centre of Oxford, with traffic restrictions in place while the work continues.
Folly Bridge, a 200-year-old crossing over the Thames, is undergoing bridge repair work until April 29th, the Oxford Mail reports. The Grade II Listed structure needs significant strengthening work on its stone arch that supports the A4144 as it links the city centre with Abingdon and other locations to the south.
The bridge is of particular historical significance, as it stands on the site of the oxen ford across the river from which the city is believed to have got its name.
Oxfordshire Council described the repair work as “essential”, but it is not the first time in recent years that bridge engineers have been called in to fix a problem with it. In 2017 repairs were needed after water seeped into the stone structure.
Speaking to the BBC at the time, Oxfordshire County Council leader Ian Hudspeth said: “This bridge was built in the 1820s. No one could have envisaged the amount of traffic that goes over it at the moment.”
He had added that the aim was to prepare the bridge for the “next 200 years”, but the impact of 15,000 a day has evidently taken a significant toll as the engineers are back just five years on.
Another historic bridge requiring significant repair work is the Grosvenor Bridge in Chester, Cheshire Live reports. Night-time closures will be in place while the stone work is repaired, following a vehicle accident on March 28th that dislodged one of its blocks.
Opened in 1832 to provide the city with a second crossing of the River Dee, Grosvenor Bridge has a 200 ft long arch, the largest in the world for over 30 years.
The chosen design was one of three, of which two were made of stone and the other of iron.