Investigation into Slane Bridge after wall collapse

The partial collapse of the western wall of Slane Bridge has been described as as extremely worrying, and has led to calls for the publication of the results of a survey undertaken on the bridge last summer. Meath County Council has this week ordered a second urgent inspection of the structure by engineers who assessed it last summer. Local county councillor Wayne Harding has warned that any structural defects in the extremely busy bridge could have devastating consequences. The bridge has been the scene of numerous fatal accidents over the years. “There is an eight foot by eight foot chunk gone out of the wall. Part of that bridge is over 500 years-old and it cannot sustain the kind of traffic that it carries every day,†he said. The Fianna Fail councillor pointed out that there was much more visible damage to the bridge in other parts and warned the structure was only as strong as its weakest point. This latest damage to the medieval bridge has also led to renewed calls for a speedy delivery of the proposed Slane bypass, which is expected to take up to 10,000 vehicles away from the bridge and the centre of the village each day. The damage to the western wall of Slane Bridge was noticed last week by a man walking his dog. Cllr Harding said he had been alerted to the wall collapse and immediately contacted the relevant authorities. “There is an extraordinary level of traffic using this bridge and any structural inefficiencies could have devastating consequences,†he warned. “A structural assessment of the bridge was carried out by Meath County Council and the NRA in 2010 and the report has yet to come before the Slane electoral area representatives.†He added: “I believe that this bridge cannot keep sustaining the levels of traffic using it and I will be making strong representations for the Slane Bypass at oral hearings by An Bord Pleanala which are to be held in the coming weeks.†Slane Bridge is a medieval structure and the road is of 18th century vintage, though it is now carrying 21st century articulated traffic. Cllr Harding pointed out that the only long-term solution to the ongoing traffic problems in Slane is the construction of the bypass. John Ryle of the Slane Bridge Action Committee said that, irrespective of what happens to Slane Bridge, they would still be campaigning for the bypass and he called for the process to be speeded up. Slane Bridge underwent a structural investigation last July when the county council closed the bridge temporarly overnight to allow for an assessment of the condition of the bridge and what repair works would be necessary on the structure. It has been damaged over the years by traffic accidents and fallen trees in the river hitting it. The investigation came in response to visible damage to the arches of the bridge. A spokesperson for Meath County Council confirmed that part of the inside wall of the bridge between the river and the canal had collapsed. She said the council had been in contact with the NRA and had requested, as a matter of urgency, a further inspection of the bridge by the consulting engineers who are assessing the bridge structure. “We will await the assessment before bringing the report to a meeting of the council. It is not our intention to put restrictions on traffic using the bridge,†she said. Meanwhile, Bord Pleanala is expected to shortly announce dates for an oral hearing into proposals for a bypass of the village, for which local people have been campaigning for years. The proposed bypass has enormous support locally, but has become a subject of controversy because of its proximity to Newgrange. The route of the bypass runs to the east of the village and, last year, Bord Pleanala sought further information on the project, looking for details of consideration given to routes to the west of the village. Cllr Harding has pointed out that the road surface between the square in Slane village and the southern side of the bridge is in extremely bad repair and there are large potholes on the road surface above where the wall collapsed. Roadworks on that stretch were due to start this week and are expected to last approximately three weeks. The county council has warned that traffic delays can be expected during these works.