South Bank railway station footbridge - near Middlesbrough

[whole diary]

[grahame]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c153ylednqlo

A railway footbridge has been closed off indefinitely after an inspection uncovered safety concerns.

The facility, at South Bank railway station, near Middlesbrough, provides access to platform two serving eastbound train services between the town and Saltburn.

Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council, which has responsibility for the bridge, said it would be working with engineers on a long-term plan for the crossing.

Rail operator Northern said minibuses were operating in order to allow passengers to travel between Middlesbrough, South Bank and Redcar Central station.

[Chris from Nailsea]

From that quote from the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page):

In March, Labour's South Bank councillor Neil Bendelow said the bridge, which was also inaccessible to wheelchair users, was in a poor condition and an upgrade was required urgently.

Apparently, nothing much was done, the footbridge still being used daily - until over six months later, when this suddenly happened:

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A railway footbridge has been closed off indefinitely after an inspection uncovered safety concerns.

So, those 'safety concerns' have been there for at least six months, without any action being taken - until now. 

[Chris from Nailsea]

An update, from the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page):

Unsafe train station bridge now to be reinforced

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No date has been set for the reopening of the footbridge at South Bank station

An unsafe railway footbridge will now be strengthened, rather than demolished.

Trains and passengers have been unable to access platform two at South Bank train station, near Middlesbrough, for 18 months after safety concerns were raised at an inspection.

The plan had been to demolish the footbridge and construct a temporary replacement, ahead of a wider transport project involving redeveloping the station. However, it has now been confirmed the Tees Valley Combined Authority (TVCA) will finance an alternative temporary solution to "strengthen" the existing structure to bring it back into use.

Network Rail is said to be working with TVCA and other stakeholders to get the project moved forward, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said. Although, neither were willing to put a date on when the bridge and platform two could be reopened, following the last self-imposed target of August 2025 for a solution being missed.

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Eastbound trains have not stopped at South Bank for a year-and-a-half

The footbridge provided sole access to eastbound platform two, transporting passengers to Redcar and Saltburn.

When it was open, the footbridge also provided access to the north of the station to Teesworks.

Trains that previously called at South Bank on the way to Redcar now pass through the station non-stop, while westbound services to Middlesbrough, Darlington and Bishop Auckland remain unaffected.

Network Rail said ownership of the footbridge was being transferred to it from Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council. A spokesperson said: "This will help move the project forward as we work with the local authority to finalise funding for the work needed to strengthen the structure. Once the necessary agreements are in place, we will move forward with appointing a contractor."

[bobm]

Alerting the pedant in me

Trains and passengers have been unable to access platform two at South Bank train station, near Middlesbrough, for 18 months after safety concerns were raised at an inspection.

I suspect the trains could access the platform.  There just wasn’t much point.