Some cookies are essential to make our website work. To help us improve, we'd like to set other cookies to show us how our website is being used.

View cookies.

Brigsteer and Underbarrow Road bridge closures, Kendal

Why we closed Brigsteer and Underbarrow road bridges over the A591 including an explanation of the issue, our decisions, risks and alternative routes.

Brigsteer and Underbarrow bridges were closed due to structural concerns.

Our decision to close both bridges was a culmination of a thorough established assessment process.

Other organisations have followed the same national standards as we have. The outcomes for different bridges will vary.

Brigsteer and Underbarrow bridges re-opened

From February 2025 Brigsteer and Underbarrow bridges are opened to vehicles up to 7.5 tonnes gross weight all cyclists, pedestrians and equestrians.

The final assessments have confirmed that the weight restriction must permanently remain at 7.5 tonnes and cannot be improved.

Working together with independent expert consultants, WSP and Jacobs, we have now completed our detailed structural assessment and category three checks on Brigsteer Bridge.

The assessment has confirmed that, while the bridges must remain classified as weak structures, they can safely support vehicles with a gross weight of up to three tonnes.

A weight restriction of up to 7.5 tonnes gross weight will be implemented under a Traffic Regulation Order. As the bridge remains classified as a weak structure, no exemptions will be permitted.

The weight restriction will be clearly signed, drivers of vehicles over 7.5 tonnes will be required to follow an alternative route.

Violating the weight restriction will not only put other road users at risk, but may result in prosecution and fines. We will be working closely with Cumbria Police to monitor and enforce these restrictions which are being introduced to protect the safety of the public.

We are also considering longer-term solutions to restore and improve full access in the area through a feasibility study.

An alternative route for Brigsteer Bridge and Underbarrow Bridge will continue to be maintained, including a further project to install additional road markings at key locations. 

Our January Newsletter news letter includes detailed technical information.

Brigsteer and Underbarrow newsletter updates

We have produced a monthly online newsletter to keep you updated with the latest information on the bridge closures and to show the work we are doing to restore links to communities in Brigsteer and Underbarrow.

Now the final weight limit has been determined, the Brigsteer and Underbarrow Bridges Newsletter will only be issued when further updates are available on the planned feasibility study.

Our awareness of the risk

At the beginning of week commencing 3 June 2024, we received the findings of an external expert report we commissioned as a part of our ongoing safety assessments which advised the need to close the bridges in a planned and managed way for precautionary safety assessments. 

What we do to maintain the bridges

As part of our commitment to keeping communities safe, proactive assessments are carried out on the 1,075 bridges and structures we are responsible for.

Reinforced concrete half joint bridges, like Brigsteer and Underbarrow, need and get special and detailed assessments that are carried out during an extended period of time to ensure that they benefit from ongoing continuous review in line with national guidance.

In 2022, we started the staged process, set out by National Standards, to assess the half-joint and post-tensioned aspects of these bridges as a result of potential risks highlighted to Highway Authorities.

We have a total of five of this construction type, all have been monitored visually since 2014 and have now received specialist assessments.

Brigsteer and Underbarrow bridges have required closure due to structural concerns, two have required imposed weight restrictions to ensure the safety of road users and the Shenstone Interchange Bridge which also runs over the A591 has been found to require no restrictions.

In Westmorland and Furness, there are five half-joint bridges. All have been inspected biennially since construction.

In 2020 the authority commenced a programme of half-joint assessments following the introduction of National Standard CS 466 ‘Risk management and structural assessment of concrete half-joint deck structures’. A contract was let to assess Brigsteer and Underbarrow in 2022.

The risk management and assessments process includes six parts:

  • Initial Review
  • Risk assessment for structural assessment
  • Structural Review
  • Structural Assessment
  • Risk assessment for Management
  • Management Plan

Following receipt of the structural assessments of half-joints of Brigsteer and Underbarrow bridges, we instructed Jacobs to undertake a review of the bridges in accordance with National Standard CS470 ‘Management of sub-standard highway structures.’ This resulted in the two bridges being classed as ‘Immediate Risk Structures.

Nothing in our past maintenance regime is likely to have prevented the need to close these bridges. The structural concerns relate to the design of the bridge, not their maintenance.

In 2022 we also commenced the process to check the post-tensioning in accordance with National Standard CS 465 ‘Management of post-tensioned bridges.’ To date we have not undertaken intrusive investigations of the post-tensioning, typically this would follow on from a PTSI inspection, as a further commission.

Why we closed the bridges

Having received the information of structural concerns, we had no other choice than to act and remove all applied load from both bridges by closing access to all pedestrians, cyclists and vehicles.

The decision to close both bridges was unavoidable for the safety of all road users.

Having received the information of structural concerns as a part of our specialist assessment report conducted by Jacobs, we had no other choice than to act and remove all applied load from both bridges by closing access to all pedestrians, cyclists and vehicles.

The report, based on available data from the 1970s, classified the bridges as unsafe and unable to support any applied load, requiring immediate closure for further investigations.

The report found that Brigsteer and Underbarrow bridges have sustained unrestricted highway loading over a period in excess of 50 years.

The CS 470 report recommended that, to reduce the risk posed by the half-joints both Brigsteer and Underbarrow bridges should be closed to all traffic (i.e. eliminate all live loads on the bridge) and that the half-joints should be monitored.

This includes preventing their use by pedestrians, cyclists, equestrians and vehicles.

Taking into account the condition of the bridges and with monitoring in place, the report recommended that the A591 can safely remain open whilst a more sophisticated assessment, with intrusive works, is undertaken.

Specialist structural reports conducted by Jacobs

We commissioned Jacobs consulting engineers to do a structural assessment of the bridges.

Half-joint assessment report Brigsteer road bridge (PDF , 28MB)

Half-joint assessment report Underbarrow road bridge (PDF , 28.2MB)

Half-joint risk management report Brigsteer road bridge (PDF , 6.3MB)

Half-joint risk management report Underbarrow road bridge (PDF , 6.6MB)

Next steps

We are considering longer-term solutions to restore and improve access in the area through a feasibility study.

Alternative routes 

We recognise the alternative routes add additional time on to journeys.

Emergency services have been informed and are still able to access all villages and support residents in need.

Vehicles over 7.5 Tonnes

The routes have been risk assessed and are the most suitable option in the area for the traffic that is diverted from the bridges.

The Underbarrow Bridge alternative route is via the C5048, U853 Queens Road (Kendal), A5284 Windermere Road (Kendal) , B5284, C5059 and C5048. The length of the diversion is 9.5 miles

The Brigsteer Road Bridge alternative route , for vehicles over three tonnes gross weight, is via C5062, U782, U583 Queens Road (Kendal), A5284 Windermere Road (Kendal) , B5284, C5059 and C5062. The length of the diversion diversion is 12.7 miles.

Reporting road defects on the alternative routes

We are monitoring the alternative route and will make repairs to actionable defects when they are identified, or are reported to us via our approved reporting channels:

by calling our highways hotline 0300 373 3736
by completing our highways online reporting form

Half-joint bridges, explained

Half-joints were introduced into bridge decks as a way of simplifying design and construction operations. A central span rest on L shaped joints.

This form of joint is now known to be particularly vulnerable to deterioration and is difficult to inspect.
 

Image illustrates a bridge span and a detail of a half-joint.

Half-joint bridges gone wrong

A recent example of a catastrophic failure of a half-joint bridge was De la Concorde Overpass in Laval, Canada, where the authorities failed to close the road over the bridge to traffic following structural concerns.

As a result five people lost their lives and six other people were seriously injured.