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Residents Left In Lurch With Drawn Out Bridge Build

Construction work to build the temporary Wallendbeen Bridge over the rail roads on Burley Griffin Way is expected to be completed past the original estimated date of September.

With the bridge collapsing in March this year the council acted to find an interim solution, before vowing to have a permanent bridge designed and assembled in the new year.

The temporary Wallendbeen Bridge will be constructed to ease the traffic flow and reduce the irritating and lengthy detours that commuters have had to endure for the past six months.

Although, due to the consistent rainfall that the region has received this year, construction work has faced numerous timely setbacks.

November is firming as the likely opening date of the temporary bridge.

“I know first-hand the importance of the Burley Griffin Way as a main transport route, connecting our communities far and wide,” Member for Cootamundra Steph Cooke said.

“I am working tirelessly to get the temporary bridge installed and opened as quickly as possible.”

The pre-engineered steel modular parts are being connected on site and will be lifted in to place via a crane when fully assembled.

The bridge will be set in place during a short four-hour timeframe that won’t disrupt train services on the line below.

“In collaboration with the Minister’s office and Transport for NSW, every option to speed up the project is being explored, Cooke said.

“Thank you to the community, freight and transport operators for their patience and understanding during what has been a difficult few months where COVID-19 and a long-wet winter has impacted construction timelines.”

Road infrastructure in the region has taken an excessive beating in recent months due to the additional truck and commuter usage caused by detours between Temora and Wallendbeen via Cootamundra.

Whilst the wet weather has been great for farmers, it has weakened road sur-faces causing them to crack and split and preventing council workers from efficiently repairing them.

Once the temporary Wallendbeen Bridge has been completed, commuters on Burley Griffin Way can except traffic conditions to return to normal – as they were prior to the collapsing.

A full understanding and explanation as to how and why the bridge, built in 1916 collapsed has yet to be provided.

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