Over 20 bridges not up to par

Almost two dozen bridges in South Lanarkshire are not strong enough to carry the heaviest lorries, a report has found.

However none of the affected bridges are in the Rutherglen or Cambuslang areas.

Figures released by the RAC Foundation show 23 bridges have been deemed `substandard’.

To class a bridge as `substandard’engineers must believe it will not be able to carry a 44 ton lorry, placing it at risk of collapse if weight restriction signs are ignored.

The majory of the identified substandard bridges lie within the Clydedale area.

Gordon Mackay, Head of Roads and Transportation Services at South Lanarkshire Council, said: “Load-carrying capabilities of older road bridges were originally identified through a bridge assessment programme completed in the 1990s.

“The assessment programme for bridges in South Lanarkshire identified 125 bridges with substandard load-carrying capacity. Excellent progress has been made in addressing this situation through bridge strengthening, bridge replacement or other appropriate mitigation measures.

“At present, only 16 of these bridges remain operational without an imposed weight restriction or without any physical mitigation measure in place. These bridges are subject to enhanced frequency inspection regimes with any requisite maintenance work prioritised as necessary according to the resources available. These measures are intended to ensure the affected bridges continue to operate safely.”