Bridge cable project completed

AN INSPECTION programme to ensure the cables on the Severn Bridge are safe is now complete.

Inspections have been taking place since last June on eight sections across the two main suspension cables as part of a £5 million routine safety investigation by National Highways.

Inspections take place every six years when the main cables are wedged open allowing the team to see right to the centre and to assess the condition of the 53 wires management advisor Colin Taylor said: "We have installed a flood gate to allow access to the seaward side of the new raised flood defences at New Passage.

"The testing of the flood defences that have been installed this year is a crucial point for the project. We are now seeing how they stand up to the kind of real- the bridge.

The main cables are wedged open for inspections to take place inside the bridge, which carries the M48 over the river.

National Highways project manager Chris Pope said: "Carrying out these essential cable inspection works will help us to keep the bridge safe and open for many years to come.

"They enable us to establish the current condition of the suspension cables and ensure the long-term viability and safety of world conditions that may occur if sea levels continue to rise in the decades ahead." council leader Toby Savage said: "Seeing the flood gate and glass panel defences in action is a clear visual reminder of how far the ASEA project has come.

The ASEA project also involves South Gloucestershire and Bristol City councils and aims to protect communities and wildlife, as well as allowing economic growth in the area.

It is due to be completed in 2026, providing 17km of flood defences from Aust to Shirehampton.

"The rigorous testing happening now is incredibly important to give confidence to New Passage residents that the flood defences here will help provide protection from the effects of climate change and rising sea levels."

"It has been a long and complex task to carry out this work and we have opened up over 900 metres of cables. We will need to complete some laboratory testing of samples and analyse the findings of the inspections but so far, the results are in line with what we expected."

The bridge was fully closed to traffic over a weekend in March to allow the inspection gantries to be removed by crane.

Since corrosion was discovered in the cables in 2006, 40 years after it opened, work was done to minimise further corrosion and inspections are regularly carried out.

The Severn Bridge has very small spaces between the 8,322 individual 5mm wires that form the two main cables, which allowed in moisture that caused the initial corrosion.