A READER sarcastically said he was glad 'we've got so many local experts' after members of the public criticised the length of time maintenance work on the bridge connecting Walney and Barrow took.

Multi-million-pound work on Jubilee Bridge has now finished, with the first phase of the project beginning in 2018.

Some readers were critical of the amount of time it took, with one branding it an 'absolute joke'.

However, reader Michael P Cassells hit back at the comments, saying: "Glad we’ve got so many local experts for next time we need a job doing.

"We don’t need to spend money on consultants or engineers, just ask The Mail to put a panel of experts together."

Tom Nye said: "4.5 million to paint a bridge grey that looked better blue - that's money well spent I say."

Steven Fletcher said: "Tom Nye, they did a bit more than just paint it."

John Wadsworth New said: "In all fairness, on a bridge that is 100-plus years old and gets a lot of traffic, it was quite essential work."

Craig Scott said: "Lanes will be shut for pothole repairs before you can blink."

Tom Dockerty said: "Talk about dragging a job out - this wins hands down."

The work on the bridge was due to be completed by the end of April but was delayed by around a month after Story Contracting stopped work temporarily during lockdown.

The last of the scaffolding on the bridge is being dismantled.

This process is due to be completed in the coming weeks.