Posted 8th September 2014 | No Comments

Swing bridge back in business after £14m upgrade

TRAINS are running again over a swing bridge in North Yorkshire, after a seven-week closure.

Work to repair and strengthen the swing bridge at Selby was originally planned for last year. However, it was postponed to keep the route open for trains which needed to be diverted around the Hatfield Colliery landslip, east of Doncaster. Although the bridge stayed in use, speed and weight restrictions had to be imposed until the repairs could be carried out.

Now the £14 million programme of work on the bridge has been completed, having started on 26 July. Since then engineers have replaced track, repaired steelwork, completed strengthening of the bridge and improved the hydraulics of the swing mechanism. They also repainted the structure. Network Rail said three of the reconstructed five spans should now last for 120 years, two of the others should be good for 60 years, the paint for 25 years and the swing mechanism haydraulics for the next 20 years.

Network Rail area director Mark Tarry said: “This is the most significant improvement made to the bridge since it was built in 1889. Many parts of it will not need any further work for decades.

“Our engineers have worked around the clock to complete this work in the shortest possible time and we thank passengers and local residents for their patience while it was carried out.

“An existing speed restriction on passenger services and a weight restriction for freight services can be lifted, improving the reliability of rail services on the route.”