MSP says failure of Aberdeenshire bridge to receive repair funding is "disgraceful"
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An Aberdeenshire bridge that has been shut to traffic for more than four years has missed out on vital Scottish Government funding for repairs to allow it to reopen.
Alexander Burnett MSP said it’s “disgraceful” that Park bridge, which links the communities of Durris and Drumoak and crosses the River Dee, hasn’t been including in Scotland’s £32 million Local Bridge Maintenance Fund.
New figures obtained by Mr Burnett from the Scottish Government show just five out of the nine applications made to the fund by Aberdeenshire Council were successful.
The local authority was given £1.7m despite asking for £6.2m to repair bridges across the region.
Park Bridge wasn’t included in the list to benefit from the Scottish Government funding package which was instead awarded to the A98 Banff Bridge, the A93 Invercauld Bridge, the A93 Auchallater Bridge near Braemar, the A93 Inver Underpass and the A939 Luib Bridge at Strathdon.
The losing bids were for - a new bridge to replace old bridge at Gairnshiel to carry Ballater to Grantown on Spey Road (A939); a new bridge to replace old bridge at Inverbervie to carry Montrose to Stonehaven Road (A92) and the repair and restoration of Buchaam Bridge to carry Alford to Grantown on Spey Road (A97).
The historically A-listed Park Bridge structure dates back to 1854 was closed to all vehicles in February 2019, after a routine inspection found serious defects and prior to its closure it was commonly used by residents on either side of the river to travel for shopping, visiting the post office and seeing friends.
But since its closure, drivers have been faced with an eight-mile diversion and Alexander Burnett, along with the Park Bridge Action Group, the community council and Andrew Bowie MP, have been campaigning to have it reopened.
On missing out on the funding package, Scottish Conservative MSP for Aberdeenshire West, Alexander Burnett, said: “While I welcome the funding award for other key bridges in Aberdeenshire, this is only the tip of the iceberg and it’s disgraceful that Park Bridge is still being overlooked.
“The bridge connected the two areas for nearly 170 years and this funding revelation is a hammer blow to the Drumoak and Durris communities which have been separated by the closure.
“More than 60 bridges in Aberdeenshire still need to be repaired by 2030 and the Scottish Government must increase funding to the local authority so all of these repairs can take place for the safety of users.
“Missing out on vital funding like this does little to ease the concerns of residents who are rightly angry about being forced to make a 15-mile detour.
“This saga has gone on for long enough and locals deserve and need this bridge to be reopened.”
In a response to Mr Burnett’s follow-up question asking the Scottish Government what other funding is available, transport minister Fiona Hyslop said: “The Scottish Government has no additional plans to provide specific funding for local road bridges.
“However, an additional £793 million cash funding has been provided to local government in 2023-24. It is the responsibility of each local authority to manage their own budget and to allocate the financial resources available to them on the basis of local needs and priorities, having first fulfilled their statutory obligations and the jointly agreed set of national and local priorities.”
