Weight limits to be tightened on port bridge

Paul Jeeves

WEIGHT restrictions on Whitby’s historic swing bridge are being dramatically increased as part of measures to prevent a repeat of this summer’s chaotic scenes when the 100-year-old crossing broke down.

Highways officials from North Yorkshire County Council will enforce a 7.5-tonne loading restriction in the “near future” to reduce the amount of heavy traffic using the structure, which normally has a 17-tonne limit, in the centre of the port.

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It will mean vehicles including refuse wagons, coaches and some delivery trucks will not be able to use the crossing.

It is understood the restrictions will be in place for several months while the county council monitors the bridge, before a decision is made about whether to introduce them on a permanent basis.

North Yorkshire County Council’s executive member for highways and planning, Gareth Dadd, said: “I am determined to resolve the issues surrounding the bridge once and for all.

“It is vital to connect the two halves of the town, and we need to make sure we do not see a repeat of what happened this summer.”

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The Yorkshire Post revealed only last week that calls for a ban on heavy lorries and buses using the bridge looked likely to fall on deaf ears after experts ruled a mechanical fault rather than traffic vibration was responsible for the breakdown.

But the county council will press ahead with the weight restrictions, and a manual mechanism could also be introduced to act as a failsafe procedure to prevent a repeat of the problems in July.

The gearbox mechanism, which was the cause of the failure on the western side of the bridge, will also be replaced on the eastern side next month.

Business owners have been petitioning both the county council and Scarborough Council, the port authority, to instigate measures to prevent excessive wear and tear on the bridge.