Delays in constructing a temporary footbridge at South Bank railway station have been described as “frustrating” by Tees Valley Combined Authority (TVCA).
The organisation say that they hope works will begin “as soon as safely possible”, but their statement comes at a time that is beyond the previously predicted completion date, laid out by the authority’s own head of transport.
Pictures taken at South Bank station on Saturday 16 August show that the condemned footbridge is still standing, six weeks after works were meant to start to remove and replace it, with no visible signs of work having commenced. Network Rail has said much is going on behind the scenes, but added that a site visit in July revealed extra potential issues.
The delays come 10 months after the footbridge was originally declared out of action, with a rail replacement bus continuing to operate eastbound between Middlesbrough, South Bank and Redcar stations (access to platform one is unaffected so trains heading west from Redcar to Middlesbrough can call at South Bank).
Speaking at the TVCA Cabinet meeting, held on Friday 27 June, Alan Weston, head of transport at TVCA, said: “I understand work will start not this weekend, but the following weekend [July 5-6], and then there’s about three weeks/four weeks of work to do over there to get that new footbridge up and running.”
The works set to take place over the past month should have seen the demolition of the existing footbridge, deemed unsafe for use and beyond economical repair in October last year, as well as the construction of a temporary footbridge that will enable access to both platforms as well as to Smith’s Dock Road to the north of the station.
A TVCA spokesperson said: “The delays to this project are frustrating. Surveys and work by Network Rail, which has committed to taking on the work to solve the closure, have uncovered access issues and problems with buried services at the station.
“Money has been committed by TVCA to demolishing the existing structure and creating a new temporary bridge to end the inconvenience faced by passengers. We are keen to see the works commence as soon as safely possible.”
A Network Rail spokesperson said: “Significant progress has been made behind the scenes but a site visit in July revealed extra potential issues that need careful consideration. These included constraints around accessing the railway, and underground pipes and cables that were not accounted for during the initial planning stages.
“We remain committed to ensuring the South Bank project proceeds smoothly. We’re in close contact with our partners and thank station visitors for their patience and understanding.”
As previously reported, plans lodged with the council state that works will be carried out by Network Rail and its contractors with a temporary footbridge due to be erected until a redevelopment of the station takes place and a permanent solution is found.
In March, Mr Weston told a meeting that the wider redevelopment of the station remained the ambition, but it was a “two to three year” project and “intense” efforts were more immediately being made to provide a temporary solution in terms of the footbridge.
Neither TVCA nor Network Rail were in a position to offer a date when works would get underway on the temporary footbridge, or offer a new target completion date, although both organisations will certainly be hoping that the replacement is in operation before the one year anniversary of platform two becoming inaccessible, in October.
