Claims children forced to cross Tipperary river as unsafe bridge repairs delayed until next year
A dangerously unsafe bridge linking Tipperary and Kilkenny won’t be repaired this year, despite claims by a local councillor that schoolchildren are walking across the river below it to get to school.
Residents in the Carrick-on-Suir area had been warned to avoid the Tinvane Bridge, also known as the Kilonerry Bridge, a popular footbridge over the Lingaun River, because it is structurally unsound.
The bridge links Carrick-on-Suir with Piltown in Kilkenny and is a popular route with walkers. It was officially closed last December.
Tipperary County Council previously said that there was no safe alternative crossing for the bridge, and that pedestrians must make a suitable detour.
At the June monthly meeting of the Carrick-on-Suir Municipal District, Sinn Féin councillor David Dunne asked district engineer Michael Scully if there was any update on repair works to the bridge and when they would be carried out.
“I’m still getting contacted by residents on the far side of the bridge, their kids are now walking across the river because it’s low enough to get across, and they’re going to school that way because it’s not safe enough to go over the bridge,” Cllr Dunne said.
In response, Mr Scully said that the council was working with Kilkenny County Council to progress plans to make the bridge safe again, but that no works would be carried out on it this year.
“We had a call with the Department last week to go through the possibility of a joint application between Kilkenny and ourselves for measure two of the Outdoor Recreation Infrastructure Scheme (ORIS), which is up to €200,000.
“Kilkenny County Council have taken the lead on the project, so their capital delivery team is taking the lead on it, so everyone seems to be on board with the idea,” Mr Scully said.
“It’s just a matter of putting an application together now, but the deadline isn’t until the end of the year, so unfortunately, it’s not a bridge that’s going to be fixed this year, but you’re never going to get a quick fix on a bridge anyway,” he added.
The district engineer said, however, that getting funding is “a job in itself” and will take some time, but that once funding has been secured, it should be a quick process to get the structure repaired.