Work 'going well' on Lowestoft bridge being made in the Netherlands

Lake Lothing's navigation channel will be closed for three weeks in the new year

Officials say work is progressing well in the Netherlands on a bridge that is being installed in the UK.

Surfacing work has been completed on footpaths on the bridge being built for Lake Lothing in Lowestoft, Suffolk.

Conservative-run Suffolk County Council said the final phase of construction was on track to start from 22 January 2024.

The council's leader Matthew Hicks said seeing the final section of the bridge arrive would be "really exciting".

The bascule span will arrive by sea from the Netherlands and enter Lake Lothing through the existing bascule bridge, before being rotated and jacked into position.

Lake Lothing's navigation channel will be closed to marine traffic for three weeks in the new year while the operation takes place.

As Harbour Authority, Associated British Ports has given its consent to a Notice of Temporary Suspension of Navigation and has issued a Notice to Mariners of the closure.

The bascule section of the bridge is being built in Westdorpe in the Netherlands

The county council said the latest pictures from the Netherlands showed discolouring on some areas of the bascule span caused by welding. This will be repaired, re-painted and given a metallisation treatment before the section is shipped to the UK.

The parapets and street furniture will be installed before shipping.

Construction of the rest of the bridge is well underway at Lake Lothing

Following the three-week closure, a further period of reliability testing will be needed before the bridge is fully operational.

There will then be a short period of time for final handover and operator staff training before the bridge can safely be opened to the public later in the year.