Story of Williton Footbridge

Claire Sheppy MRICS continues the story of this project

With Chris van den Arend having died in December 2010 it fell to John Parsons and John Byfield to see this wonderful project, to return a footbridge to Williton, through to its completion. The weather was very cold – all builders and civil engineers know to avoid pouring concrete in freezing weather – so it looked as if there was no way that the concrete would be poured before Christmas, and the consulting engineers, Cass Hayward, sent a long memo to John Parsons stressing when not to pour concrete. One of the good things about having Cass Hayward as consulting engineers was that John Parsons’s son was their head. West Somerset had some quite deep snow, relatively unusual for the Southwest, and I recorded in my diary that on December 17 there was deep snow just a day after Chris Van den Arend’s funeral. With more falling on December 20, it wasn't until after Christmas that I once again went to Williton to check the levels to make sure the top of the formwork was exactly the right height to take the footbridge base. On Saturday 8 January I went back to Williton where by now the formwork for all four concrete pads was in place and all of the reinforcing cages had been made, so my job was to re-check the levels to ensure all four corners of all four

Craning in sections of footbridge, 16 March 2011. Photo: Claire Sheppy

The footbridge was officially re-opened on 16 July 2011 by Gerald Creed, who had rescued it from Trowbridge. Photo: Claire Sheppy

formwork boxes were set at the right height. With the weather having warmed up somewhat, it was possible to pour the concrete 11 days later, and I was able to return to Williton to check the concrete levels. The bridge itself returned from Cardiff on 16 March 2011 and was installed on the same day. Before that both John Parsons and John Byfield had been to Tema Engineering to check it. Needless to say, watching the bridge going in was quite spectacular, it having it arrived on a lowloader. An enormous crane was needed as it had to be lifted over the main station building. By the end of the day, it was in place – main span, trestles stairways, and all. Then to make it usable. A start was made on the steps at the end of March. In an earlier article I mentioned that Chris van den Arend had arranged for the materials to be bought and paid for, ready for use, but it was John Baines of the Repair and Maintenance Department (RAMS) who acquired and prepared the timber for the steps. It was a little while before the footbridge had a roof but as soon as possible after it had been checked and inspected the bridge was finally ready to be used. The first steam locomotive to pass under the bridge was No. 70000 Britannia, which somehow felt very fitting. Coincidentally, also on 16 March, Martin Hope was appointed as the new Williton stationmaster. He had been involved with the Pontypool and Blaenavon Railway, but to follow in the footsteps of Chris van den Arend was no easy job. As is often the case, the completion of the work to bring the bridge into use took longer than envisaged, but on Saturday 25 June the independent assessor inspected the work. A week later, his report gave the go-ahead to use the bridge subject to obtaining the West Somerset Railway company

approval. The Office of the Railway Regulator also had to be notified. The bridge was inspected on Sunday 10 July by the WSR general manager, who gave the green light to open it. Martin wrote in the Journal that the word spread quickly that the footbridge was open and soon many photographers descended on the station to get their first shots from this new location. In fact, I wasn't one of them as I had already had the opportunity to take photographs with the permission of John Parsons, the project manager. On Saturday 16 July it was officially opened by Gerald Creed, who had rescued it from Trowbridge in the first place. Fittingly, a brass plaque has been placed on the centre of the footbridge span in honour and remembrance of Chris van den Arend whose dream has now been fulfilled. Without those two and so many others the footbridge would not be in place today. The work was still not quite finished, as it was intended it should have a roof once again, and I will deal with this in my next, final part.

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