Threatened Lydbrook River Wye bridge's future is secured

The bridge, also known as Stowfield Viaduct or the Black Bridge, connects Lower Lydbrook with Welsh Bicknor

The future of a footbridge near Lydbrook which is used by 20,000 walkers a year has been secured.

Gloucestershire County Council has pledged to register Stowfield Viaduct as a public right of way by April 2023.

An oversight meant it was not on its definitive map and campaigners feared that could lead to its closure.

Lydbrook parish councillor Bruce Hogan said: "I'm delighted. It means the council has to maintain the path and keep it open."

The former railway bridge forms part of the 136-mile (218km) Wye Valley Way.

But Gloucestershire County Council never registered it on a definitive map when the footpath was established in 1981.

Walkers feared the lack of legal protection put the route at risk of closure.

Traffic manager Philip Cameron told a committee that Covid and changes in council staff had led to delays in registering the path.

But he added: "We aim to get the route formally recorded on the Definitive Map of Public Rights of Way this financial year."