Original plaque restored on Jubilee Bridge

Cumbria County Council invested approximately £5m in the significant maintenance and refurbishment project.

The original bridge plaque from 1935, when the bridge was renamed to Jubilee Bridge from its initial name of Walney Bridge, erected in 1908, was restored during the works. A new plaque marking the completition of the refurbishment has also been added to the bridge.

The project required over 140,000 hours on site, over 1,000 steelwork repairs and over 20,000 square metres of grit blasting and painting. 5,000 square metres of waterproofing was laid, 3,200 sq metres of hot rolled asphalt was laid to the carriageway, hard shoulder and hard strip and 600 metres of new kerb was installed.

Over 100 tonnes of scaffolding was installed and removed from the structure to allow access to complete the grit blast, repairs and painting works.

Taking to social media, Cumbria County Council praised the work that had been undertaken at the bridge. They said: "We are delighted with the completion of the maintenance works on Jubilee Bridge, and that this crucial part of local history will be here for many years to come. We were able to rescue and refurbish the original bridge plaque from 1935 too. With thanks to the local community for their patience and understanding, and to contractors Story Contracting and Mott MacDonald for their skills and expertise.

Ray Langley, Divisional Director of Mott MacDonald was delighted to have been part of the project. He said: “Mott MacDonald is delighted to have managed this challenging project on behalf of Cumbria County Council, particularly the social outcome of maintaining access for the residents of Walney Island for the foreseeable future. The bridge is the UK’s oldest working Scherzer bascule bridge, a brilliant piece of Edwardian engineering. As bridge engineering consultants, we take great pride in extending the life of existing assets for future generations.”