Swing bridge work delayed until March
The newly painted Whibty Swing Bridge w124909
important improvements to Whitby’s historic swing bridge have been hampered by harsh weather conditions.
The £250,000 upgrade on the 103-year-old landmark has been put on hold due to the high winds and heavy rain which has hit Whitby in recent weeks.
The scheduled completion of the maintenance work, which is being carried out in a bid to reduce breakdowns, has now been pushed back to mid-March.
The bridge will remain operational so as to avoid a repeat of the incident in summer 2010 when the bridge was stuck open for nine days, isolating eastern and western sides of the town, affecting tourism and local businesses.
Whitby borough councillor Joe Plant said: “Already the bridge is looking very smart after repainting of the external beams.
“But there is no doubt that the wintry weather and prolonged rain has severely hampered the upgrade.
“We need to do the job properly as this is such an important landmark for the town and we cannot rush to complete the job when the weather is against us.”
The work involves replacing timber fenders, installing new navigation lights, waterproofing elecrtic cabling and re-painting the bridge.
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Weather for Whitby
Saturday 25 May 2013
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 5 C to 12 C
Wind Speed: 9 mph
Wind direction: North
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 7 C to 16 C
Wind Speed: 9 mph
Wind direction: North west
