Tyne Bridge restrictions in force while bird 'hotels' installed

Restrictions are to come into force on the Tyne Bridge while kittiwake "hotels" are installed ahead of refurbishment work.

The bridge will be shut to northbound traffic for two nights from Wednesday, between 20:00 GMT and 06:00.

The closures are to enable nesting ledges to be installed so the breeding season is not disrupted during the revamp, planned for later this year.

Every year the bridge hosts 1,200 breeding pairs of kittiwakes.

Over the next two nights, one lane of the southbound route will still be open to traffic, the Department for Transport (DfT) said.

Newcastle Council said work on the main bridge had been scheduled to start in early 2024 but that the government funds were "still outstanding".

The River Tyne is home to the world's furthest inland breeding colony of kittiwakes.

The nesting ledges will be built on scaffold towers which will be easier to reach than other nests during the refurbishment works, the council said.

Lane restrictions are also due to come into force for five weeks from 29 January while scaffolding is erected.

This will mean the Tyne bridge will be reduced to one lane in each direction during the day, from Mondays to Fridays.

Councillor Marion Williams, the council's cabinet member for a Connected, Clean City, said: "We're committed to restoring our iconic Tyne Bridge.

"A constraint we need to work around is the kittiwake breeding season, so we're installing the hotels ready for when the government releases long-awaited funding and the refurbishment programme can get under way.

"We appreciate this may be disruptive to drivers, but we need to push on with the work to give us a fighting chance of restoring the Tyne Bridge ahead of its centenary in 2028."

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