ONE of the oldest bridges over the Wye could be completely closed to traffic during repairs if lorry drivers don't stop turning a blind eye to weight restrictions.

The warning comes from the county council's highways officers who say they've caught 38 tonne trucks crossing the Bigsweir bridge which currently has a limit of 7.5 tonnes while repairs are carried out.

Work to repair and paint the bridge near St Briavels began in early November and is expected to continue for 16 weeks. While the works takes place scaffolding has been put up, which means weight restrictions and all vehicles heavier than 7.5 tonnes have been diverted along a signed route.  Liz Kirkham, the county council's Bridge Engineer, says her department has had reports of HGVs ignoring the weight limit and using the bridge.  

"Only yesterday (November 25), 20 HGVs were caught by the Safety Camera Partnership crossing the bridge.  These drivers will be identified and issued with tickets. What they're doing is weakening the structure and it may mean we'll have to close the bridge to all traffic until the work is complete.

She continued: "The decision to keep the bridge open was made out of consideration for the local community as it is a busy and well used route and we didn't want to disrupt travel in the run up to Christmas.  However, we are concerned about the safety of our workers and the structure of the bridge itself.

"Some of the trucks using the bridge have weighed 38 tonnes, when the normal weight limit is 16.5 tonnes.  If this continues, we will have no choice but to close the bridge until the work is complete."

From next week, Gloucestershire Highways staff  will be controlling traffic on the site and asking drivers of HGVs that are over the weight limit to turn around and use the proper diversion route.