Newport council paid £200,000 to Bassaleg Bridge consultants

Safety inspectors closed Bassaleg Bridge in the summer of 2021 after determining the structure was unsafe and could potentially collapse under its own weight.

Residents of Forge Mews, on the eastern side of the bridge, have long complained about the inconvenience of the bridge closure, which means they cannot drive into their own street or park their vehicles outside their homes.

Now, documents seen by the Argus show the local authority has paid £200,000 to consultants since the bridge was closed and earmarked for repairs.

Traffic management schemes have also cost Newport City Council hundreds of thousands of pounds, the documents suggest.

The bridge was closed completely in August 2021 but inspectors said it was safe for pedestrians to cross the following January.

Forge Mews, in Bassaleg. (Image: Newsquest)

In a letter to nearby residents at the time, the council said "further specialist works including the lifting of the complete structure and replacement of bearing on the west abutment is necessary to support the final goal to fully reopen the bridge to vehicular traffic".

But as we approach the second anniversary of the bridge's closure, there is little sign of the project being completed.

And earlier this year, the council updated a roadworks reports and removed the projected end date for the bridge repairs, reclassifying the work as "ongoing".

Bassaleg Bridge continues to be the subject of a "temporary" road closure. Only emergency services vehicles are currently allowed to access Forge Mews, via the A467, using an electronic code to unlock a barrier.

Furious residents have gone on to complain their cars have been vandalised when parked on the other side of the river, and have also raised concerns that emergency services vehicles could not access their street quickly if disaster strikes.

Firefighters reportedly had to cut through a lock to reach Forge Mews last year. (Image: Newsquest)

Those latter fears were realised last autumn when a fire broke out in one of the properties in Forge Mews, and an ambulance took several minutes to eventually access the street via the A467, after paramedics initially tried to drive across the bridge - only to find it blocked off.

The ambulance arrived shortly after firefighters, who reportedly had to use bolt cutters to access Forge Mews from the A467, because the electronic lock on a barrier between the two roads had seized up.

Earlier this year, residents told the Argus they had been left facing a "myriad of problems" and called delays to the bridge repairs "pathetic".

Newport City Council was contacted for comment.