£4m Wexford bridge moves a step nearer

November 1995

Consultants have been appointed to prepare contract documents for the £4 million re-building of Wexford bridge, which is scheduled for 1997.

In a major step forward , the County Council has been given clearance by Environment Minister Brendan Howlin to recruit consultants for the project.

The Council is now working towards an end of ’96 start to the project, with the bridge replacement taking place from mid-March 1997 onwards.

The biggest headache facing the Council is how to regulate traffic during the replacement process, and whether or not to completely close the bridge for the duration of the work.

Senior executive roads engineer, Noel Casey, explained that the Council has a couple of options in this regard. One is to close the bridge completely, while the other would see traffic reduced to just one lane.

He said that the first option would involve the complete closure for about 11 weeks while the superstructure is replaced, and would involve a nine-mile detour for people through Castlebridge.

The second option of keeping one lane open would cause serious traffic disruption over a longer period of time.

Mr Casey said that if the Council decides to keep one lane of traffic open, it could mean disruption of over six months instead of the 11 weeks under the complete closure option.

If they do decide to go for a shorter replacement period and a complete closure, then it is envisaged that a passenger and goods ferry would be laid on for the duration of the work.

However, Mr Casey stressed that the Council would be entering into discussions with the general public and taking their views on board before making any final decisions.

The current pre-stressed concrete bridge, which dates from 1959, is to be replaced by a new steel structure, which will be a little bit wider than the existing bridge.

Investigations have shown that the piers of the bridge are sound, so it is only the superstructure top part that will have to be replaced. The new bridge will retain the same contours as the existing one.