Agenda item

Report of  Deputy Chief Executive/Corporate Director of Development and Growth.

Chris Capewell, Team Leader, Bridges and Drainage, Highway Design presented the report of the Corporate Director of Development and Growth outlining information from Highways regarding the maintenance of Trent Bridge. Chris highlighted the following:

(a)  one the objectives of the Bridge Estate is to provide for the efficient maintenance and repair of Trent Bridge and the approaches to it. Trent Bridge is an important, visible approach to the city;

(b)  at last inspection, the bridge is structurally sound and is satisfactory for 40/44 tonne vehicles. This will only need to be reassessed if there is a significant change in the condition of the structure or changes in legislation;

(c)  the bridge is due to be repainted in 2018, which will be 16 years since it was last repainted except for the inside faces of the parapets which were painted in early 2015 to enhance the appearance of the bridge. As repainting the bridge is costly a balance must be struck between deterioration of metalwork and cost;

(d)  in 2015 a bid was made to the Highway Maintenance Challenge Fund for a scheme that would see the bridge re-waterproofed and repainted, as well as the footways and carriageway resurfaced. Unfortunately this bid was unsuccessful however there is another opportunity to bid for this funding in 18 months’ time. If successful a small amount of match funding would be required;

(e)  there has been some deterioration to stonework which could be very expensive to repair as sections would need to be replaced in new stone and would need agreement with English Heritage;

The following answers were given in response to questions from the Committee:

(f)  Neighbourhood Services is responsible for the cleaning, and general maintenance of pavements on the bridge is with Highway and Energy Infrastructure;

(g)  the legal definition of ‘and approaches to it’ is unknown, but this is often defined as being where the embankment rises up;

(h)  Nottingham City Council has a Heritage Officer but they are not currently involved with Trent Bridge;

(i)  £72,000 a year from the Bridge Estate are reserved towards the maintenance of Trent Bridge. This should cover the cost of repainting in 2017/18, subject to garnering quotes. This would not cover the cost of waterproofing the bridge. Other options to pay for waterproofing the bridge to use the Trust’s assets, which would need approval, or to borrow the funds;

(j)  the Committee expressed the view that the current maintenance regime should be reviewed with then aim of improving the appearance of the bridge.

RESOLVED to

(1)  note the contents of the report;

(2)  approach the Heritage Officer on the possibility of applying for Heritage Lottery Fund money for the bridge;

(3)  investigate the installation of a ‘Welcome to Nottingham’ sign on the approach to the bridge;

(4)  investigate installation of an interpretation panel outlining the history of the bridge;

(5)  investigate updating the decorative lights to a more modern standard and making them more accessible for repairs;

(6)  provide figures on actual spend on maintenance and general upkeep of the bridge over the last few years;

(7)  seek legal advice on the legal definition of ‘Trent Bridge and the approaches to it’ as mentioned in the objective of the Bridge Estate.

The Chair wished to thank Barry Dryden for his hard work over the years supporting the Committee.