REPAIRS are being planned for a motorway bridge over the river Severn after a resident flagged concerns about a failing joint to the local MP.
West Worcestershire MP Dame Harriett Baldwin passed on the concerns to National Highways chiefs and the organisation has confirmed repairs are being planned after investigations revealed part of the structure is starting to fail.
The M50 bridge over the river Severn at Uckinghall will be repaired next month. Bridges along the M50 have faced many years of structural work and road closures while the concrete structures were surveyed and repaired.
The motorway was opened in 1962 and older structures were surveyed and assessed following the collapse of the Ponte Morandi bridge in Genoa in 2018.
Public buildings have also had to have urgent repairs after the decline of aerated concrete which has been used in construction projects since the 1950s.
Dame Harriett said: “A constituent contacted me sharing concerns about the bridge structure after experiencing excessive noise and evidence of structural decline.
“I immediately flagged this to National Highways and assessments are already underway with a plan to fix the declining structure.
“The M50 is an old motorway and it has seen a long run of repairs in recent years but I know drivers and local people will be reassured to know that these sorts of issues are assessed and mitigated swiftly.”
A spokesperson for National Highways has explained the issue relates to one of the bridge joints failing. According to the firm, this is a common issue and one which does not mean the entire structure is failing.
National Highways Service Delivery Manager, Stuart Chandler, added: “During a routine inspection of the M50 bridge we discovered one of the bridge joints was failing and needs replacing.
“Work to replace the joint will ensure it does not cause any safety issues in the future and will also reduce the noise as vehicles travel over the bridge.
“The work has been scheduled for this week and will take place over two nights to minimise disruption to drivers.”
