LATEST ON BAILEY BRIDGE
We had the initial meeting on the Bailey Bridge (BB) on 22 March. It was chaired by SCC Councillor and Cabinet member Andrew Reid (Transport and Highways) and attended by Richard Smith and Michael Ladd (SCC Councillors), David Beavan (ESC councillor), representatives from Reydon, Southwold and Walberswick, and business interests, the ferry operator, and SCC and Suffolk Highways experts. Everyone expressed support for doing the renovation and were pleased that SCC had allocated the funds to do so.
What was made clear by the report by engineers at the start of the meeting is that they find the bridge in fairly urgent need of extensive refurbishment and that this work will be expensive and time consuming. It has taken SCC approximately a year to get the studies done, financing decisions and funding confirmation. Over the next approximately 2 months, they are working on obtaining the approvals of various agencies, including the Environment Agency, to undertake the work. Because of these remaining steps, it is highly unlikely that work on the BB could begin prior to June. Therefore, advancing the work to begin immediately, as some of us had proposed, is not possible.
Following a discussion of the extent of the bridge's deterioration and the necessary work which would entail its closure for repairs, the meeting focused on the timing of the closure. There is clearly a very strong preference by the engineers and Suffolk Highways to undertake the work during the summer months to get the best weather conditions, to minimise the possibility of weather-induced delays and to arrest further deterioration of the bridge. There is clearly a preference from all the community representatives and Councillors to delay the work until September if this is at all possible. It was agreed at the meeting that SCC would bring in another engineer to see if a delay to September taking into account the bridge's condition and the necessary works.
Many questions were asked about whether the length of time for the bridge to be shut could be shortened (regardless of the start date) and whether the cost was justified. Suffolk Highways explained that they had already taken steps to shorten the period of closure by contracting a 7-day work week. Doing the work in the summer was also proposed because it would help limit weather-induced delays, especially for painting. But further tightening of what is now expected to be a 12-13 week timeline isn't possible because of the technical requirements related to the sequencing of the work, given that segments of the bridge need to be cut out, fabricated and replaced and 3 coats of specialised paint added, among other steps. They explained that the work requires a lot of labour, that environmental and other considerations require that the work be done in an exacting way that increases costs, and that overall it is an expensive bit of renovation. There is no way for the participants at the meeting to be able to judge the cost aspect beyond this explanation.
SCC is firmly committed to helping mitigate the impact of the closure on local businesses and the community. They are aware of the very negative impact the closure will have on businesses already suffering from the long lockdowns in 2020 and 2021. They have also been made aware of the extremely large number of people that use the bridge every day and that these numbers are expected to be higher than ever because of the possibility of limited summer travel. The meeting participants' preference was for a temporary bridge, but the SCC engineers confirmed that this was not possible from both a timing and a financing perspective. They committed to work with the community representatives, the business rep and the ferry operator to add significant ferry services. Also, they were open to the idea of adding a late evening shuttle bus service to take people who had crossed late in the day/had dinner at the pubs. They expressed a willingness to work with the local reps and ESC to address the concerns about the impact of more traffic, given the heavy congestion experienced during the summer of 2020 and the potential dangers on the road.
Next steps: Preparation work by Suffolk Highways will continue apace, particularly in terms of getting the relevant planning permissions. SCC will contract with an independent engineer to inspect the bridge and give a second opinion on the timing for closure. A subgroup will be established immediately to come up with potential mitigation measures to lessen the negative impact of closure. Better communications will be prepared to keep the communities and businesses informed. A second meeting of the working group will be arranged shortly to move discussions forward and, especially, at which a firm decision by SCC will be made on the timing for closure and repairs.
Josie Bassinette, Chair, Walberswick Parish Council.