Humber Bridge safety barrier plans to be submitted

An artist's impression of how the Humber Bridge walkway would look with the new barrier

Plans to raise the height of the barriers along the Humber Bridge’s walkways to improve safety are to be submitted to two local authorities.

The Humber Bridge Board has agreed to install higher defences in a bid to reduce the number of suicide attempts following a feasibility study in 2019 which looked at how other bridge operators deal with emotionally-distressed people.

The Grade I listed bridge spans the estuary between Hessle and Barton-upon-Humber.

Richard Hannigan, chair of the Humber Bridge Board, said: “Raising the barriers on the Humber Bridge walkways has been the subject of debate for a long time.

"However, finding a solution that doesn’t detrimentally impact on the bridge has always been one of the major challenges."

The proposals include adding horizontal wire fencing on top of the existing barriers "to improve welfare for bridge visitors and users, without compromising on the spectacular views".

The 1.4 mile (2.2km) long bridge links East Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire

The Board has allocated £3m for the project and said the tolls "will not increase" to pay for the work, which also includes removing the old maintenance gantries.

It said its proposed design had been rigorously tested against Historic England's criteria for listed structures before it could submit plans to both East Riding of Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire councils.

Mr Hannigan, who is also deputy leader of North Lincolnshire Council, said: “The proposed design will provide a sturdy but lightweight extension that will increase the parapets to 2.7m without impacting on the integrity or performance of the bridge."

He said the new barriers would make the bridge "safer for everyone".

“Now we have found a workable solution to raising the walkway barriers, the Board wants to ensure this important work is carried out,” he added.