Race against time for new Leven bridge

Council officers are facing a race against time to deliver a new Leven Railway Bridge ahead of the town being reconnected to the rail network in just over two years’ time.

It is understood that eight different options for the replacement of the structure – the main link from Methil and Buckhaven into Leven over the River Leven – remain on the table, and a final report on the preferred solution is due in a matter of weeks.

Time is now of the essence though, as trains are expected to resume running in and out of Levenmouth for the first time in decades in December 2023.

Around £2.5 million has already been identified within Fife Council’s capital plan to strengthen the bridge deck of the existing Leven Railway Bridge, but further investigations have revealed the bridge abutments now also need to be replaced.

That is likely to increase the complexity – and cost – of the project.

A completely new bridge is one of several possibilities, although that could lead to lengthier diversions and disruption.

In an update to local councillors, Fife’s structural services manager Ross Speirs explained the local authority was effectively dealing with two bridges – the railway bridge and the adjoining Bawbee Bridge – so the plan is to co-ordinate the rail and bridgeworks via a single contractor.

“Replacement of the bridge abutments for the Leven Rail Bridge and the adjoining reinforced concrete arch Bawbee Bridge now exclude the potential for a temporary overbridge on the alignment of the existing bridge,” he explained.

“Applying a bridge support on a reinforced concrete arch would fundamentally compromise the stability of the Bawbee Bridge and is to be avoided.

“The duration of the bridgeworks is likely to be in the region of 12 months hence the option of closing the bridge to traffic, whilst ideal from a construction perspective, would impose a major diversion route.”

With tight timescales now in place, a full report highlighting fully-costed options is due to be considered by Fife Council’s policy and co-ordination committee on December 4.

“We’re now looking at everything we can do and the best way to do it,” Mr Spiers concluded.

Asked by councillors if the timescale is feasible, Mr Spiers stressed: “It has to be.”

PRESSURE: Leven’s Bawbee Bridge is at the centre of a construction conundrum.