OVER 40 council-owned bridges in the North-East cannot carry the heaviest vehicles on roads, costing nearly £90 million to bring up to a good condition, new figures show.

Across Darlington, County Durham, North Yorkshire, Middlesbrough, Stockton and Redcar & Cleveland local authorities, 41 bridges are substandard, costing £89,100,000 to bring bridges to a good – but not necessarily perfect – condition.

This work can range from a simple repaint in order to protect metalwork from corrosion to resurfacing the road.

North Yorkshire had the highest number of council-owned substandard bridges at 18, followed by County Durham, which had 11, and then Darlington, Middlesbrough and Redcar & Cleveland which had six, five and one respectively. In Stockton, none of these structures were considered substandard.

Substandard means unable to carry the heaviest vehicles on roads, including lorries up to 44 tonnes.

However, many of these bridges do have weight restrictions and this is also relative to the overall number of bridges each local authority has.

For example, Middlesbrough's five substandard bridges make up 11 per cent of its portfolio, making it the authority with the highest percentage of these structures.

Both Middlesbrough and North Yorkshire councils were unable to comment.

Durham's 11 substandard bridges make up just two per cent of bridges, two of which are intended to be returned to full load capacity in next five years, costing £40,600,000.

The council believes seven are suitable for the location and environment they are in. For example, are historic structures built to earlier standards.

The remaining four, which are in a maintenance program, are Witton Park, Kyo Heugh, New Elvet and Whorlton bridge.

Brian Buckley, Durham Council's Strategic Highways Manager, said: "County Durham covers a large area and we have a total of 639 highway bridges to maintain. In the context of this, seven of the 11 bridges that are currently classed as substandard for maximum 44 tonne loading are, in fact, suitable for the location and environment and there are no proposals to strengthen them.

"The other four bridges are in a maintenance programme, including £7.5 million capital investment on New Elvet and Witton Park bridges.

"We conduct regular maintenance inspections of our bridges to ensure they are safe for use and in good condition. In the event of damage to our bridges, our engineers are quick to inspect the site and identify what measures are needed to restore the bridge to its former condition with as little disruption to public as possible."

In Darlington, where six per cent of bridges are substandard, three will be brought to full capacity in the next five years, costing £6 million.

The council area has two weight-restricted bridges, at Russell Street and Spring Court, and there are no plans to remove these restrictions.

There are also two pedestrian-only bridges at Leadyard and Polam Lane, again with no plans to change this.

The three substandard bridges, which the council monitors for safety in accordance with legal requirements, are Westbrook, Northgate and Carlbury.

A spokesperson from Darlington Council said: "As we comply with compulsory national standards, all our bridges and structures are considered to be safe."

In Redcar & Cleveland, the one substandard bridge will not be returned to full capacity in the next five years due to resource restrictions.

A spokesperson said: "The safety of the travelling public is always a prime priority and all our roads and bridges are regularly assessed.

"In this case, the only bridge in the borough identified on the report is a footbridge over the A174. We are able to assure the public the footbridge is safe and is scheduled for improvement works to be undertaken."