A massive project to restore the Tyne Bridge to its former glory will finally get underway in September, it has been confirmed.

Refurbishment works on the rusting North East icon have been planned for years and subject to a long-running saga as council bosses tried desperately to secure funding for the £40m-plus project.

Transport chiefs have now finalised plans for the renovation scheme, which could last up to four years after inspections in 2022 revealed that the bridge was in an even worse condition than had been feared.

Initial works will begin in September, once the colony of kittiwakes that nest on the grade II listed landmark during the spring and summer months have left, starting with steelwork repairs on the Gateshead end of the crossing.

But major disruption for the tens of thousands of drivers who use the bridge every day will not take effect until next year.

Newcastle City Council said on Wednesday that the main phase of the Tyne Bridge’s revamp will begin in earnest in early 2024, at which point traffic is expected to be reduced down to one lane in each direction over the busy route.

Council leader Nick Kemp said:  “We are committed to preserving our iconic Tyne Bridge for future generations. For many the Tyne Bridge is a symbol of home and we welcome this progress.

“We are unrelenting in our passion to see our much-loved bridge restored to its former glory, but this will require up to four years of refurbishment due to the huge scale of works required.

“The bridge isn’t only an iconic structure, it is also a major gateway to our city and the works will have an impact on the travelling public from next year. We are working hard with transport providers to ensure good public transport links for people travelling in and out of the area.

“I am sure everyone will get behind us due to the huge importance of the bridge to our city and region, as we all want to see it shining proudly in the Tyneside skyline once again.”

The prospect of halving the number of lanes on the bridge, which is used by 70,000 vehicles every day, has prompted fears of major congestion lasting for years.

Council officials said they are “looking at a number of ways to help people plan their journeys, including promoting alternative routes and improving public transport links to ease disruption”.

Newcastle and Gateshead councils were awarded £35.3m from the Government last year to finally go ahead with the refurbishment project.

However, that money is yet to be handed over and the two authorities have now submitted final documents to the Department for Transport to secure its release.

In the meantime, the initial phase of the works will be paid for by the councils’ own £6.1m contribution.

As well as a full repaint of the bridge, contractors Esh will be tasked with a series of critical structural repairs too – including steel and concrete fixes, drainage improvements, stonework and masonry repairs, waterproofing and resurfacing, parapet protection, and bridge joint replacement.

Martin Gannon, leader of Gateshead Council said: “The Tyne Bridge is an important landmark for the North East and we all want to see this iconic structure brought back to the standard we expect to see.

“We will collaborate closely with our partners to put plans in place to manage the transport network as this refurbishment works gets underway. It will be a proud day when the Tyne Bridge is restored to its former glory.”

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This refurbishment will be the first major maintenance on the Tyne Bridge since 2001.

The funding package agreed with the Government was also meant to cover a major restoration of the Central Motorway, which the councils say should also start in 2024.

However, there have been concerns that rising costs as a result on the inflation crisis could mean that some of the motorway works have to be amended, delayed, or axed in order to focus money on the urgent bridge repairs.