It's a case of deja view for historic Iron Bridge
This is the view that visitors to Ironbridge could be seeing in a year's time. It was taken more than 30 years ago – the last time the Iron Bridge underwent major renovation.
The image has been shared by Graham Hickman, who has lived on Ironbridge's High Street overlooking the famous bridge for the past 65 years.
At the time of the renovation work, Mr Hickman was working for the Coalbrookdale Company, in the Gorge, and remembers vividly the company making replacements for damaged parts.
Mr Hickman, 66, started as a costing clerk in the company in 1965, later becoming a costing accountant
The Coalbrookdale Company forged the original parts for the bridge and its expertise was called upon again when the time came to restore it.
Mr Hickman said: "It was a very exciting time. We were a big happy family of people working there and generations worked for the company Because I live right next to the bridge I used to watch people out doing the repairs and when they were painting it they covered it with scaffolding.
"They also put a sheet underneath the bridge."
English Heritage announced last week it was planning to spend £1.25m on renovation works to the bridge.
Surveyors have already been out on ropes to look at the bridge, with work planned to start in January 2017.
The programme will involve work on radials and braces holding the bridge together, the deck plates and wedges, the main arch and the stone abutments on either side of the river.
English Heritage's head of conservation, Morgan Cowles, has today spoken in more depth about the challenges that workers will face on the project.
They too intend to scaffold the bridge, and hope to include a viewing platform to let people see how the work will progress.
A new surface will be put on the top of the bridge that will make it less permeable to water.
Mr Cowles said: "One of the biggest challenges is carrying out the work on such a large structure and how to do that logistically. Also, we will be looking at the how to put on the scaffolding in such a way that it does not overload it. Managing the closure of the bridge will also be a challenge: starting in January 2017 and saying it is closed until January '18 is just not feasible."
