Council submits plans for iconic footbridge
Telford & Wrekin Council has submitted final plans for a unique and iconic footbridge to link Telford Town Centre with Telford Central railway station.
The plans for a complex and ambitious engineering project are expected to be debated by Telford & Wrekin Council’s planning committee on Wednesday April 26.
The proposed bridge will span across the live Shrewsbury to Wolverhampton railway line, the current A442 dual carriageway and Rampart Way in Telford town centre, which is currently being turned into a dual carriageway.
Subject to final planning approval, the new design will replace the current outdated red footbridge which is extremely costly to maintain and does not comply with accessibility legislation or present a favourable first impression of Telford when arriving by train.
The new bridge together with the dualling of Rampart Way and part of Hall Park Way comes under a single project known as the Telford Town Centre Connectivity Package, which is funded by the Department for Transport and some Section 106 contributions. The overall cost of the project is £12.3m.
It is expected that work will start on site to build the new bridge in late June/early July this year. The new bridge is likely to be lifted into place in late February/early March 2018, coinciding with the 50th anniversary of Telford New Town and an opportunity to celebrate the new bridge as an iconic addition to the townscape.
Work would then begin on the removal and demolition of the existing red bridge, with all work expected to be completed by late June/early July 2018.
Councillor Angela McClements, Telford & Wrekin Council’s cabinet member for Transport, said: “This is a massive and extremely challenging but exciting project which will create a visually stunning gateway to Telford town centre and the submission of the final planning application is an important milestone.
“We have been working hard over the last few years on improving the connectivity and accessibility of the town centre but we have been conscious that Telford Central station is still out on a limb.
“The new footbridge will create a much more user friendly and attractive link between the town centre with its shops, leisure facilties, Southwater restaurants and our award winning town park with the Telford Central railway station.
“Going forward a detailed planning report will be submitted to our Planning Committee which will explain how the project will come to fruition and what provision will be in place for pedestrians to access the station while it is taking place.”
The footbridge project has already been approved by Telford & Wrekin Council’s Planning Committee. However, the new application features a slightly amended design to reduce the weight of the bridge – which is why it has been re-submitted for planning approval.
