Telford footbridge: Huge crane takes shape as road closures bite
It has taken two days, but now one of Europe's largest cranes is starting to take shape.
The massive structure is expected to be finished later today ready to put sections of Telford's new bridge into place tomorrow night.
Stretching across the A442, known locally as the EP, the bridge connects Telford Central with Telford Shopping Centre.
Parts of the southbound carriageway has been shut since Wednesday, but from today the northbound road will be closed as well.
Motorists are being advised to completely avoid the road – one of the main routes through the town – until it can be reopened on Tuesday.
Planned work to put the new section of bridge across the railway is set to go ahead on Saturday night and in the early hours of Sunday morning.
But depending of weather conditions the work may have to be delayed and pushed back to Monday morning.
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People are being asked to help in reducing disruption while the closures are in place.
Drivers are asked to avoid both sides of the EP throughout the closure, as well as to walk, cycle or car share if at all possible. The council warned that direct routes off the A442 will also be very busy during the closure, and that it is worth allowing extra time for any queues.
Since the autumn the ground around the current bridge has been cleared while in Leeds, work began at specialist fabricators SH Structures to make the parts that, when assembled, will form the new bridge.
The project is funded by a government grant that has been awarded to the council which can only be spent on the project.
A live stream of the crane's construction can be seen at telford.gov.uk/footbridge
