£200K for busy city bridge that’s ‘not about to be replaced’

Herefordshire Council is to spend £200,000 this year looking into an ageing bridge near Hereford railway station, though Network Rail insists it poses no immediate danger.

As part of this financial year’s £6-million Local Transport Grant from the Government, the council has earmarked £ 200,000 for “Burcott Road bridge replacement”.

The brick and steel-built road bridge over the railway immediately northwest of the station forms part of a popular rat-run from the north into the city, avoiding the often congested A49 from Holmer and A465 from Aylestone Hill.

Signs at either side of it warn of a “weak bridge”, with a 7.5-tonne vehicle weight limit.

But despite the description of the spending, a council spokesperson confirmed: “The £200,000 allocation relating to Burcott Road does not currently relate to a confirmed bridge replacement scheme.”

They added: “The bridge is owned and maintained by Network Rail, and any decision to undertake major works would be led by them.”

To support its longer-term maintenance and potential future work on it, “a traffic monitoring exercise will be undertaken during the current financial year to better understand usage patterns and inform any joint considerations”, they explained.

Following a meeting with the council, a Network Rail spokesperson said it was currently reviewing the condition and capacity of Burcott Road bridge, “as part of our routine inspection and renewals programmes”, and will continue to work with the council “to identify the most appropriate long-term solution for both road and rail users”.

Any major works would not begin until Network Rail’s next funding period of 2029-34, they added.