Should bridge's anti-terrorism barriers be removed?

Part of the structure has been daubed in graffiti

They were installed as an interim anti-terrorism measure - but almost eight years later, barriers on Nottingham's landmark Trent Bridge are still there.

City councillor Steve Battlemuch is arguing the "ugly" barriers, introduced to protect pedestrians, should be removed and replaced with bollards.

He has raised the issue before but believes it is even more important since Nottingham Forest qualified for Europe, meaning more people will be visiting the city for matches.

However, Nottingham City Council said it did not have spare money to fund replacing the barriers - an estimated cost of £1.5m - and did not know if it would be allowed to do so.

Nottingham Forest's City Ground is situated to the east of Trent Bridge

Councillor Linda Woodings, who is responsible for transport, said the government might not let the council remove the barriers, which were installed following the 2017 London Bridge attack.

On 3 June 2017, attackers used a van to drive into pedestrians on London Bridge before stabbing people in Borough Market, killing eight people and injuring many more.

Woodings said: "Hypothetically, even if we had the money, I don't know if we would get agreement for that.

"Central government, the National Counter Terrorism Security Office (NaCTSO), instructed us to install them, and they provided the barriers to us as well.

"They are lorry-proof barriers, effectively, that would stop any vehicle coming off from the road on to the pavement."

The BBC contacted the Home Office - which works with NaCTSO - and asked whether or not the barriers could be removed, but it has not provided a response.

Nottingham is on the north side of the river and the bridge, while West Bridgford in Nottinghamshire is on the south side

The current Trent Bridge was built in 1871, but there have been several bridges in the same spot since about 920.

It crosses the River Trent, which is the boundary between Nottingham and Nottinghamshire. However, the bridge is the responsibility of Nottingham City Council, rather than Nottinghamshire County Council.

It is close to two football stadiums - Meadow Lane and the City Ground - and also Trent Bridge Cricket Ground.

This means thousands of people walk over the bridge on matchdays, including some who are said to jump over the barriers and walk into the lanes of traffic.

This aerial photo from 1949 shows the three major sporting venues close to Trent Bridge

"People quite often walk in the first lane of traffic, so the barrier wouldn't actually stop anything in that situation," said Battlemuch, a "massive" Forest fan who regularly walks across the bridge.

"If they were individual bollards then people can get out of that situation a lot quicker."

The Wollaton West councillor believes the current barriers look "terrible" and described them as "not necessarily fit for purpose".

"It's high time this eyesore was removed and replaced with something more suitable," added Battlemuch, who believes the cost could be shared between various local authorities and nearby sports clubs.

He also said they could be made to look better in the short-term.

"There are people in the city that would do it, that do street art that could make them look better for a very small amount of money," he added.

Battlemuch also said clarity was needed from the Home Office about whether or not the barriers were still needed.

"If it is the fact that we have to have some sort of bollards then I believe we could have something that looks a lot better," he said.

Similar barriers were installed on numerous bridges following the 2017 London Bridge attack

According to Woodings, the barriers were installed after Trent Bridge was identified as a "point of risk" by the government.

Temporary barriers were also put in place on a number of crossings in London.

And she believes the barriers have proven to be an "important safety measure" for managing sports crowds, as they deter people from walking into the road.

"If there are just bollards, big crowds will walk the other side of them," she said.

Woodings also questioned whether it would be possible to replace the barriers with bollards for practical reasons, as they have to be sunk into the ground.

However, she said the council could explore ways of making them look better, provided this was low cost.

Andy Caddell said there were "more important things" than replacing the barriers

Wider views on the barriers are mixed.

Andy Caddell, from the Nottingham Forest Supporters' Trust, believes that public money should not be used to replace the barriers.

"Do you know what? I think there are more important things," he said.

"I think they do a good job keeping people safe, and I wouldn't want to see the council spending money, which we don't have, on introducing pretty barriers.

"If there were bollards, there would be a lot more people in the road."

But Forest fan Jordan Stevenson, who walks over Trent Bridge every time he attends a match at the City Ground, thinks the barriers should be replaced.

"I think the bridge looks absolutely disgusting, it looks a mess," he said.

"Thousands of people every week have to go past this and it's just not good."

Jake Kingston-Thundercliffe believes the barriers should be replaced with something "more ornamental"

Steve Willans, a partner in the Trent Navigation pub, which is near the bridge, thinks the look of the barriers could be improved.

"They were put there for a reason and I think we do need them as a deterrent," he said.

"When you walk over the bridge I always think they could do with livening up a little bit.

"Get some graffiti artists on there; just a bit of colour as a gateway into the city, I think it would look great."

And Jake Kingston-Thundercliffe, who lives in nearby West Bridgford and walks his dogs over the bridge, thinks the barriers should be replaced with something "more ornamental".

"It does seem a shame because it's a nice bridge and they don't look very nice," he said.

"If the barrier is going to be a more permanent fixture now it should probably be something that matches the character of the bridge, maybe the same as the railings on the outside of the bridge."