In official: bridges fail 40-tonne test
Page 5
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
by Miles Brignall
• The Government has admitted that it is way behind in its bridge improvement plan so it will be forced to impose hundreds of weight limits when the UK's derogation from 40-tonne trucks expires on 1 January 1999.
In its reply to the Parliamentary Transport Select Committee investigation into roads and bridge maintenance, written before the last election, the former Government said that bridges which fail to meet the new capacity will have to be closed or governed by strict weight limits.
The reply adds that local authorities will need to concentrate on improving bridges off primary routes which carry trucks to strategic sites such as industrial premises. It does not accept that every bridge, regardless of its importance and funding, should be dealt with in accordance with local priorities.
The select committee was critical of the Government's attitude to the bridge strengthening programme and called on it to spend more to deal with the problem.
A spokeswoman for the new Government, who initially denied any responsibility for the report, says it is committed to upgrading "all primary routes", but declines to define them.
The Freight Transport Association says the problem was identified a long time ago but apparently nothing has been done about it.