Council told to keep a close eye on bridge costs

A councillor has urged Worcestershire County Council to "keep a handle on the cost" of a new bridge in the county.

Evesham's Hampton Bridge was given planning permission 10 years after plans were first proposed.

Councillor Martin Allen urged the administration not to let costs increase in the same way as it did with Kepax Bridge in Worcester.

That partially-complete structure now has an estimated cost of almost £16m after the original estimate rose from £9m.

"I’d like the administration to keep a handle on the cost. We do not want this ending up like the Kepax Bridge," Mr Allen said.

In 2021, BBC Hereford & Worcester reported the cost for Hampton Bridge was £4.26m but the county council's capital programme for 2024-25 listed the revised budget as £11.4m.

A spokesperson for Worcestershire County Council said: "We can confirm that the total costs for the project are currently being finalised."

The idea of the walking and cycling bridge was pitched as part of developer Bellway’s plan to build hundreds of homes in Hampton.

The council’s cabinet backed the proposals in 2021 but the project still needed the green light from planners for work to start.

Members of the council’s planning and regulatory committee visited the site on Monday.

In the following day’s meeting, they were told the aim of the bridge was to provide a connection between the east and west sides of the river for pedestrians and cyclists, minimising their daily contact with vehicles.

The bridge will be 84m (275ft) long and 3.5m (11ft) wide.

It will have a “weathering steel, rust-like appearance” and have handrail lighting that dims overnight, a report for councillors said.

A total of 15 trees would need to be cut down in order to make way for the bridge but more than 60 will be planted across the site.

This news was gathered by the Local Democracy Reporting Service which covers councils and other public service organisations.

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