Work to renovate the Beverley Station 130-year-old footbridge which closed due to its rotting wooden canopy has begun ahead of its reopening later this year.

Engineers began work to strengthen the cast iron structure of the footbridge at Beverley Station, following its closure in September. Network Rail’s North and East Route Director Matt Rice said the works were vital to refurbish the footbridge which dates from the 1880s while keeping passengers safe.

A Network Rail spokesperson told LDRS the newly restored footbridge is set to open in November once the works are finished. It comes after East Riding Council’s Planning Committee first approved plans to remove the footbridge’s wooden canopy last July.

Councillors heard the Grade II-listed structure could no longer withstand the effects of wind and the weight of passengers, with no viable options to preserve it. There were concerns that parts of the weakened canopy could start falling onto the tracks below.

But objectors at the time claimed it had become run down because of a lack of maintenance after standing for 130 years without issue. The cast iron part of the footbridge was among a series of ‘Type Ones’ installed on North Eastern Railway (NER) lines in the late 19th Century.

It is one of the few surviving footbridges of its kind left on the Hull to Scarborough railway line. The wooden canopy is thought to be a later addition after the bridge was first installed in 1889.

Network Rail works are set to see the cast iron base of the bridge cleaned, repaired and repainted and its flooring strengthened so it can remain. The iron bridge parapets are set to be replaced with steel replicas, infilled with mesh panels.

Passengers will continue to be diverted along Armstrong Way while the works take place. Mr Rice said he was pleased the works were now getting underway.

Matt Rice, North and East Route Director for Network Rail, said: “I’m pleased that work is getting underway to fully restore this historic footbridge at Beverley station. It is an important piece of history that dates back to the 1880s, so it’s vital that we refurbish it sympathetically whilst ensuring it remains safe for passengers.

“I’d like to thank passengers for their patience whilst we push ahead with this project, and I look forward to the bridge opening later in the year.”

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