Repairs to footbridge 'could cost more than £3m'

Repairs to a popular footbridge used by tens of thousands of walkers could cost more than £3m, according to a county councillor.

The Black Bridge, near Lydbrook in the Forest of Dean, has faced several closures in the past 10 years due to safety concerns. It links Gloucestershire with Herefordshire over the River Wye, forming part of the 136-mile Wye Valley Walk.

Gloucestershire County Council highways cabinet member Mark Harris said the cost of the bridge repairs was expected to exceed £3m but he said there "wasn't the budget to do it at the moment".

He said the council was seeking external funding to enable the bridge to reopen.

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, a public notice was issued in April officially announcing the bridge's temporary closure "to safeguard the health and safety of the public".

A six‑month extension was issued for the closure because of ongoing works.

Harris said he could not give a specific date for when the bridge would be reopened.

He said a bid to the Department for Transport's Structures Fund was currently in the process of being submitted and other bidding opportunities would continue to be investigated.

"It's not high up the priority list compared with some of the other safety issues out there," he said.

Green Party councillor Sid Phelps, who represents Lydbrook at the Forest of Dean District Council, has been campaigning to get the bridge reopened for years.

He said he would "welcome a discussion" to understand where the "eye‑watering figure" of £3m had come from.

Phelps said he would encourage local councillors and residents to think about how to reopen the bridge with a "real plan" rather than "wishing on a wing and a prayer".

Follow BBC Gloucestershire on Facebook, X and Instagram. Send your story ideas to us on email or via WhatsApp on 0800 313 4630.