Tipperary locals warned not to use dangerously unsafe footbridge
Those getting out and about for walks in one part of Tipperary this festive season have been warned that a popular local bridge is closed until further notice due to safety concerns.
Locals in the Carrick-on-Suir area are being told to avoid the Tinvane Bridge, a popular footbridge over the Lingaun River, because it is structurally unsound.
"Following recent inspections, the structure has been deemed unsafe for use, and the closure is necessary to protect all users.
"Unfortunately, there is no safe alternative route across the river, and pedestrians must take a suitable detour,” a representative from the Carrick-on-Suir Municipal District said.
The bridge, which is under the responsibility of Kilkenny County Council, will remain closed until further notice.
"Kilkenny County Council are currently assessing the required works, and we will provide updates as soon as more information becomes available,” the Carrick-on-Suir district office added.
At the December meeting of the Carrick-on-Suir MD, councillors said that locals had been moving the barriers blocking access to the bridge, and advised people not to do this.
Sinn Féin councillor David Dunne said it was a dangerous situation and appealed to people to not use the bridge.
"I know there’s people being discommoded, and that it’s a link to the Leinster Way, it’s a lovely loop walk, but that bridge is unsafe at the moment to use, so I’d ask people not to use the bridge.
"We’re putting barriers there but they’re being removed every time, and we just can’t keep going up doing that, so I’m asking the public to be careful, do not use that bridge,” Cllr Dunne added.
"We’ll hopefully get Kilkenny County Council to reinstate the bridge under some greenway or blueway initiatives, and we will endeavour to make it wheelchair friendly as well,” the Sinn Féin councillor added.
In response, the Carrick-on-Suir district engineer said that the full bridge needs to be replaced, so the job on the bridge will be a big one.
"Even though the bridge falls under the remit of Kilkenny County Council, it affects the people of Carrick-on-Suir, so we’ll be putting pressure on them to get it resolved as quickly as possible.
"It’s an old bridge, it’s over a river, the bridge is in a bad state, you’re probably looking at a full replacement, it’s not going to be cheap, it’s not going to be quick, but we’ve done what we can on our side, but it’s not an easy fix,” the engineer added.