Eastham Bridge collapse: Near-miss minibus will travel new crossing first
The first vehicle to cross a new bridge will be the minibus that nearly plunged into the river when the old bridge crumbled away in front of it.
The new Eastham Bridge across the River Teme is due to open tomorrow, bringing to an end a year of long diversions for locals around the village of Eastham, near Tenbury Wells on the south Shropshire border.
The previous bridge was an 18th century structure that dramatically collapsed in front of minibus driver Derek Trow and 11 schoolchildren from Lindridge St Lawrence Primary School as they approached.
Now the same minibus will complete its interrupted journey as part of the opening ceremony of the new 33-metre long, 84 tonnes bridge. Councillor Ken Pollock, Worcestershire County councillor for the Tenbury area, said: "The bridge will open to pedestrian, horse and vehicular traffic on Thursday, at about 3pm.
"There will be three-way traffic lights there for a while because, while the road is clear and it is safe, the whole thing is not quite finished yet.
"But on the day there will be a little ceremony to open the bridge and the first vehicle across will be the minibus that was going to cross it when it collapsed. That will be going south. Then the first vehicle going north will be a Tenbury Transport Trust minibus and it will have on board the youngest and oldest local residents."
The new bridge has been built to incorporate what little remains of the previous bridge but is a new, modern structure which has as its base two huge steel beams.
There was not enough left of the previous bridge to consider rebuilding it as it was. The cause of the collapse was thought to have been due to fast-flowing water eroding sediment around the foundations of the structure, rather than structural problems with the stonework itself.
