Bridge verdict 'top of list' for new Government
Adam Hewitt • Published 13 May 2010 13:00
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A ROW over a listed railway bridge which is derailing a £70m track upgrade is "at the top of the in-tray" for the new government.
The Westbury Lane bridge (right) in Purley was set for demolition and a rebuild by Network Rail as part of its freight route upgrade from Southampton to the Midlands, aimed at taking up to half a million lorries off the road.
But West Berkshire Council listed the structure at the last minute. The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) must now decide whether to overturn the listing in the national interest so the bridge can be heightened and the tracks widened.
Spokesman Toby Sargent said: "The work has all been done and it's now at the top of the in-tray for the new Culture Minister, whoever that may be, to say yes or no."
Network Rail's Russell Spink said: "It's our job to safeguard railway heritage, but our conservation consultants say this bridge is in no way unique. If the DCMS decides the listing needs to stay, that's when we face a potentially very expensive problem that could mean we've carried out millions of pounds worth of wasted work.
"Unfortunately some people feel that this old bridge is more important than getting half a million lorries off the road."
The Brunel-style bridge, based on sketches by the engineer, was built around 1840 and widened in 1891 and listed because it shows "the pioneering earliest phase of railway development nationally".
Purley Parish Council said Network Rail had taken insufficient account of the historical value of the bridge and that the plans would cause lots of disruption. But Adam Sowan, of the Thames Valley Campaign for Better Transport, says Brunel was a pragmatist who would agree that getting more freight onto the railways should take priority.
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