A council is demanding that Canal & River Trust pay for the rebuilding of a bridge damaged in the recent flooding of the Calder & Hebble Navigation.
A number of bridges over the waterway have suffered damage, and Calderdale Council has stated that Elland Bridge requires complete rebuilding and that the Trust is responsible, Roger Fox tells us.
New bridge required
A spokesman for the council stated:
"It is the view of Calderdale Highways, the Canal and River Trust and their [it's] contractors that a new bridge will be required to replace the existing damaged structure.
"We have requested CaRT make an immediate start to designing a replacement for Elland bridge."
Out of action
The 200 years old bridge suffered huge cracks in its structure with the road above sinking, and now out of action, with Calderdale Council stating that work on the design of a new bridge and its building be started straight away, though it is realised this will take most of this year to complete.
Other bridges along the waterway have also suffered damage in the floods, and it is feared that should the Trust have to foot the bill for all the repairs this will run into many millions of pounds and have great impact on the money available for maintenance. Photograph by Chris Hayman.
However, Allan Richards tells us that the Trust is already on record as saying it has limited resources, suggesting it is after others to contribute!
It was above this bridge that narrowboats were lifted on to the bank, with others sunk, as can be seen through the bridge and shown on the picture.