No quick fix for Beaufort bridge

SPIDEOG BRIDGE CAVED IN LAST NOVEMBER BUT NO FUNDING IS AVAILABLE

WORK to repair a bridge that collapsed in the Beaufort area during heavy flooding is not expected to be carried out until later in the year.

Kerry County Council’s Roads Department has stated that work on Spideog Bridge is expected to start sometime in the second quarter of 2013, subject to funding and permission from state bodies.

Located on the L7515 close to Beaufort Church, the bridge ( pictured right) caved in November following a heavy storm that saw over two inches of rain fall in a matter of hours.

A diversion of approximately four kilometres is currently in place via Beaufort village.

The damage was caused by several tree branches, vegetation and soil which washed up during the heavy flood and fully eroded one of the abutments and significantly damaging another.

While repair work had initially been expected to take place in the weeks after the damage, an engineering assessment revealed that a full replacement was necessary.

Design work on the replacement is underway and permission is now being sought from the OPW and Inland Fisheries Ireland. The council has also submitted an application for a Specific Improvement Grant to the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport .

A spokesperson for the Roads Department has stated that the start date for the reconstruction will depend on when the necessary permissions are received but will not be later that the second quarter of 2013.

Cllr Michael Cahill said that funding for the project was a matter if urgency as the detour was causing a huge inconvenience to local landowners.