Dumfries and Galloway Council admits new Kirkcudbright bridge is 'years' away
The local authority has also ruled out installing a temporary crossing on cost grounds.
A new bridge for Kirkcudbright is 'years' away.
And a temporary crossing has been ruled out on cost grounds.
The stark situation is outlined in a report for next week's meeting of the council's economy and resources infrastructure committee.
The bridge, which is nearly 100 years old, was closed at the end of March after engineering experts Mott MacDonald raised safety concerns.
It is due to reopen on July 2, allowing for cars and light vans up to three tonnes crossing the bridge in single file.
Temporary traffic lights will be installed initially, with permanent lights in the pipeline.
The reopening of the bridge has been welcomed by local residents, however, they are keen to see a new bridge as soon as possible.
But in his report, engineering design manager Duncan McDonald states: 'Officers have started to consider options to develop an indicative cost of a new bridge as well as timescales associated with this.
'Due to the complexities of work required to develop a new bridge for Kirkcudbright, it is anticipated that this will take years, however, officers are committed to developing this and will follow due diligence in order to seek correct member approval.'
The report outlines no fewer than seven stages that would need to be completed – from a feasbility study and options appraisal to finding a contractor and building the bridge.
Galloway and West Dumfries MP John Cooper had called on the Army to build a temporary bridge while the main crossing couldn't be used.
However, Mr McDonald says that building a Bailey Bridge – as used during World War Two – isn't practical.
The width of the river would require several spans, not just one, requiring foundations to be built.
That would mean riverbed and bank investigations which 'would take several months to organise and undertake at significant cost'.
The foundations would also require a lengthy period of time, meaning there is little chance of a temporary bridge to be built 'within a reasonably short-term period'.
Building a temporary bridge over the footprint of the existing one also has 'several major issues to be overcome and risks managed'.
The report notes that Mott MacDonald feel 'after further analyses and complex modelling' they do not now feel there would be 'a significant risk to public safety' to reopen the bridge to three tonne vehicles – as long as traffic management measures are put inplace.
Data indicates that 90 per cent of the 20,000 vehicle crossings on the bridge every week fall into the three-tonne car and light van limit, meaning reopening the bridge 'would see most of the travelling public either side of the Dee reconnected'.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Metro
18 hours ago
- Metro
If World War Three erupts this is the UK bunker we're all heading to
With the Doomsday Clock remaining extremely close to midnight and Donald Trump striking Iran after previously suggesting the US was on the verge of World War Three, tensions are extremely high across the globe. Last year, Britain's top general, General Sir Patrick Sanders, warned civilians could be conscripted to fight a war against Russia, saying the UK's military is much 'too small' to handle such a conflict on its own. General Sanders' remarks come nearly two years after he said Britain was facing a '1937 moment' – a reference to the two years preceding the Second World War. But if full-blown world conflict breaks out, AKA World War Three, there are several places across the globe which would probably be safe – one of which is located in the UK. Wood Norton, a tunnel network running deep into the Worcestershire forest, is easy to miss from above ground. Only a small radio mast and security banner is visible from ground level. Originally bought by the BBC at the beginning of World War Two, its initial purpose was to be a hidden base for the broadcaster in the event a crisis in London. Wood Norton is now used as a training base for sound engineers and technical staff at the broadcasting company. Its mast would continue broadcasting messages from the BBC if the UK were ever to go into crisis mode. Also referred to as PAWN, Protected Area Wood Norton, the site boasts several storeys of architecture underground. BBC documents released in 2016 revealed that the base would be utilised in the event of a grave attack on the UK. The facility is reportedly able to house up 90 BBC staff – including 12 news editors and sub-editors – and is even equipped with a ping-pong table. Peters Mountain, situated in the vast Appalachian Mountains, has beenused as an AT&T communications station for some time. You can even see an AT&T logo painted on a helicopter landing pad. It serves as one of several secret centres also known as AT&T project offices, which are essential for the US government's continuity planning. The centre can house a few hundred people, and according to Mr Graff, the bunker has received renovations costing $67 million in recent years. He stated that if an attack on Washington were to occur, it would potentially be used as a relocation site for intelligence agencies. The Raven Rock Mountain Complex, dubbed 'Harry's Hole' after President Truman who gave the project the thumbs-up, has maintained an air of mystery since its construction began in 1948, first opening its doors in 1953. Raven's Rock was constructed with the intention of being a 'centrepiece of a large emergency hub' according to Garret Graff, author of Raven Rock: The Story of the U.S. Government's Secret Plan to Save Itself – While The Rest Of Us Die. Boasting 100,000 feet of office space, the bunker could facilitate up to 1,400 people. The base also has two 1,000 foot-long tunnels as well as 34-ton blast doors to help reduce the impact of a possible bomb attack. The site was placed into standby mode by President George H.W. Bush in 1991 – however, $652 million worth of upgrades were added to the site following 9/11. According to Graff, the underground city was kitted out with 27 new fuel tanks in 2012, both carrying 20,000 gallons. Right now the bunker is thought to have 900,000 square feet of office space, as well as space for 3,000-5,000 government employees. However, family members wouldn't be allowed to live in the base. Mr Graff added: 'Families would have been prohibited from Raven Rock — as they would have been from effectively all of the Doomsday bunkers. 'Although in recent years as the veil of complete secrecy has lifted, family members of Raven Rock personnel are allowed to visit it for specific ceremonies. 'So at the very least, family members today can picture where their relatives will spend Doomsday, even as they're barred outside.' Cheyenne Mountain Complex, located in El Paso County, Colorado, is a defence bunker for the United States Space Force. Better known as the headquarters for the North American Aerospace Defense Command, the site was built in the 1950s over paranoia about the Cold War. Its five chambers have reservoirs for fuel and water – and in one section there's even reportedly an underground lake. More Trending Almost $40 million was invested into the facility in order to kit it out with the best technology, including 15 console displays and three room-sized Philco 212 computers. The Cheyenne Mountain Complex costs $250,000,000 to run every year and can hold up to 1,000 people a month. It was on the brink of closure prior to 9/11 and was briefly put on standby mode in 2006, but the Obama administration revived the base and the Pentagon announced it would re-staff the bunker in 2015. A version of this article was published in February 2024. Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@ For more stories like this, check our news page. MORE: River Island's £32 flip flop wedges could easily be mistaken for £545 Gucci shoes MORE: Putin tells Russians 'the whole of Ukraine is ours' in 'disdainful' speech MORE: Neighbour 'killed couple on nudist ranch after being humiliated with a hot dog'
The Herald Scotland
20 hours ago
- The Herald Scotland
U.S. hits Iran nuclear facilities, braces for counterattack
Measures to protect the nearly 40,000 U.S. troops in the region have been incrementally increased over the last two weeks, said the official, who was not authorized to speak publicly. The Army has been at the third of four levels of alert at most places in the region, the official said. Iran is expected to retaliate in some way, the official said. However, Iran's ability to counterattack has been degraded by Israeli airstrikes. Iran is still believed to have some offensive capacity, including drones that could target U.S. bases in the region, the official said. More: 40,000 reasons to worry: U.S. troops in Middle East could face Iran blowback B-2 stealth bombers are based at Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri. They are the only aircraft that can deliver the Pentagon's largest conventional bomb, the bunker-busting GBU-57. That bomb can penetrate deep into the ground, even through concrete, before it delivers a devastating explosive charge. More: How does a bunker-buster bomb work? A closer look at the GBU-57 The deeply-buried nuclear sites in Iran likely would have required multiple strikes to damage or destroy the equipment they held. "A full payload of BOMBS was dropped on the primary site, Fordow," Trump said on Truth Social. "All planes are safely on their way home." The site is located under a mountain. Israel's airstrikes and drone attacks unleashed inside Iran had compromised what had been considered robust air defenses, the official said. It's unclear if other U.S. warplanes took part in the raid. However, it's likely that the Pentagon took measures to ensure that it could rescue pilots if they had been shot down, or if mechanical failure had forced pilots to eject from their warplanes. Now, the Pentagon will brace for a counterattack. In 2020, after the Pentagon killed Iranian Gen. Qasem Soleimani, Iran responded by firing 13 ballistic missiles at an air base in Iraq. The attack wounded more than 100 U.S. troops.
BBC News
a day ago
- BBC News
Voice of America: Hundreds of reporters fired as Trump guts agency
Hundreds of journalists for Voice of America (VOA) - most of its remaining staff - have been fired by President Donald Trump's administration, effectively shutting down the US-funded news Trump administration, which has long accused VOA of left-wing bias, said the layoffs were because the agency was "riddled with dysfunction, bias and waste".Steve Herman, VOA's chief national correspondent, called the dismantling of the outlet, which was set up during World War Two to counter Nazi propaganda, a "historic act of self-sabotage".Among those axed were Persian-language reporters who had been on administrative leave, but were called back to work last week after Israel attacked Iran. According to the Associated Press news agency, the Persian reporters had left the office on Friday for a cigarette break, and were not allowed to re-enter the building after the termination notices went out."Today, we took decisive action to effectuate President Trump's agenda to shrink the out-of-control federal bureaucracy," Kari Lake, whom the president appointed to run VOA, said in a statement on Friday announcing the layoffs of 639 total, more than 85% of the agency's employees - about 1,400 staff - have lost their jobs since March. She noted that 50 employees would remain employed across VOA, the Office of Cuba Broadcasting, and VOA's parent company, the US Agency for Global Media (USAGM).A statement issued by three VOA journalists who have been suing to stop the elimination of the network said about the latest firings: "It spells the death of 83 years of independent journalism that upholds US ideals of democracy and freedom around the world."The move had been expected since March when Trump ordered VOA, as well as USAGM, which oversees VOA and funds outlets such as Radio Free Europe and Radio Free Asia, to be "eliminated to the maximum extent consistent with applicable law".The agencies have won acclaim and international recognition for their reporting in places where press freedom is severely curtailed or non-existent, from China and Cambodia to Russia and North Dan Robinson, a former VOA news correspondent, wrote in an op-ed last year that the outlet had become a "hubris-filled rogue operation often reflecting a leftist bias aligned with partisan national media".Trump's criticisms of VOA come as part of his broader attacks against the US media, which studies suggest American news consumers view as highly president has also urged his fellow Republicans to remove federal funding for National Public Radio (NPR) and the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS).
