Railway bridges reopen as steel work completed

The railway bridge in Langport has reopened

Two railway bridges and the surrounding roads have reopened after extra steel work was installed to strengthen the structures.

Langport bridge in Somerset carries the railway from Castle Cary to Taunton over the A378. The road is now open again to traffic with three-way traffic lights in place at night.

The bridge above the B3108 at Limpley Stoke, Wiltshire has also reopened. Traffic can travel under the bridge again, with local buses restored to their usual timetables.

Network Rail principal portfolio manager Dan Parkes said: "We're grateful to the communities of Langport and Limpley Stoke for their patience as these two bridges were renovated."

Workers installed steel work to make the bridges more stable

The bridges were also grit-blasted, cleaned and given a new coat of paint.

Network Rail said the new beams would stop the weight of passing trains going through older beams and damaging them.

Follow-up work in Langport will takes place between 13 and 14 as well as 21 and 22 September, and a full road closure and diversion will be in place for those dates.

Network Rail principal portfolio manager Dan Parkes added: "We've been hard at work for several months in the West, making sure all the bridges in the region are fit for a modern railway."