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Decision due on replacing Cloddach Bridge near Elgin


By Hazel Lawson Local Democracy Reporter

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Councillors are expected to decide whether to spend £2.74 million to replace Cloddach bridge tomorrow.

The Cloddach Bridge - near Birnie, south of Elgin - has been closedto all motorised vehicles on public safety grounds. ..Picture: Daniel Forsyth..
The Cloddach Bridge - near Birnie, south of Elgin - has been closedto all motorised vehicles on public safety grounds. ..Picture: Daniel Forsyth..

The span on the Elgin to Birnie road was closed to vehicles two years ago.

Moray Council originally considered it too expensive to repair the maximum diversion for people is six miles.

However a £1.5 million funding pledge from the UK Government in March last year opened up debate on whether the bridge could be replaced.

In June councillors voted 14 to 10 in favour of spending £30,000 on a pre-feasibility study to see if progressing a business case would be worthwhile.

It was also decided that a £1.5 million underspend on bridge repairs could be used to fund the project.

That overturned a decision taken a few months earlier not to go ahead with preliminary investigations.

In October members then voted by 14 to 12 to go ahead with a full business case for replacing the bridge.

Although the span is shut to cars and vans it can be used by pedestrians and cyclists.

Its condition has deteriorated over the last two decades.

A 7.5 tonne weight restriction was applied in 2001, then lowered to three tonnes in 2019.

The Cloddach Bridge - near Birnie, south of Elgin - has been closedto all motorised vehicles on public safety grounds. ..Picture: Daniel Forsyth..
The Cloddach Bridge - near Birnie, south of Elgin - has been closedto all motorised vehicles on public safety grounds. ..Picture: Daniel Forsyth..

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