The RAC Foundation
survey, details of which were revealed earlier this week, found 361 out of
6,694 council-maintained bridges across the country did not meet Department
for Transport standards for capacity and weight restrictions, which means they
are not fit to carry the heaviest vehicles on the roads.
Newport had the highest proportion of substandard
bridges (30%) followed by Denbighshire
(22%) and Conwy (20%).
The survey said that 36 of Denbighshire’s 161
bridges failed to meet the standards, representing a work backlog of £11
million.
Philip Gomm, the RAC's head of external
communications, said bridges were not "about to collapse" but the
survey highlighted how many were incapable of supporting large vehicles such as
44-tonne lorries.
"These structures, many of which will have
been built hundreds of years ago, are under relentless and growing pressure
from both human activity and the elements," he said.
The RAC estimated the cost of bringing all of
Wales' bridges up to a good standard would cost about £98m.
A spokesman for the county council said: “The
figure for Denbighshire includes all bridges that have a sub-standard
structural / scour assessment or where inspections have identified significant
(capital sized) works. All these bridges are being monitored, and
restrictions are only being applied where necessary.
“The information has enabled us to identify works
necessary to make sure that our bridges remain operational and we have a 10
year investment plan to address those works.
“We also made a substantial additional investment
in the revenue budget for highway structures last year, which is aimed at
ensuring they are adequately maintained and remain operational for the
foreseeable future.”
No comments:
Post a Comment