Repairs, costing up to £500,000, for Leven Bridge

Repairs, costing up to £500,000, are needed to Leven Bridge, in Yarm, near Stockton, after divers found gaps between the foundations and the river bed.

The discovery will now lead to many of the 327 bridges across the Stockton borough being checked for the same problem.

The 19th Century bridge has been closed to traffic and pedestrians since Friday after large cracks appeared in the road surface.

Preliminary investigations revealed high river levels have caused the erosion of some loose material underneath.

However, specialist divers yesterday discovered more serious structural problems.

Richard McGuckin, acting head of technical services at Stockton Borough Council, said: “The cracks on the road surface are the first sign there is a problem.

“The bridge is fairly unstable, but it is not in danger of collapsing.

The river has washed away material from underneath.

“The situation we have here is exactly the same as in Cumbria, when one the main bridges collapsed.

“We have already started to identify a wide range of marine engineering solutions.

“The problem is fixable, but it will take eight to 12 weeks. The high water levels we have been experiencing have caused erosion.

“This is a highly unusual situation, which has been caused by changes in the river flow.

He said: “We are going to have to take notice of what has happened here, so we will be checking other bridges across the borough.”

Investigations into the cracks in the road surface have revealed a hole, however this is not seen as a serious problem to solve.

All bridges in the borough receive regular checks and Leven Bridge was due a thorough inspection later this year.

Long queues of traffic in Ingleby Barwick and Yarm have been reported since the weekend as the A1044 is a major route between the two towns.

Mr McGuckin added: “The road diversions will remain in place.

Safety is our primary concern.

People will be frustrated by this, but it’s is the only sensible course of action.”