Three of Cork’s most important heritage bridges are to undergo either restoration or significant maintenance works this year.
St Patrick’s Bridge:
Cork City Council, in conjunction with Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII), is to begin preliminary works on the repair and rehabilitation of the iconic St. Patrick’s Bridge next week.
This bridge is representative of 19th century design and construction and its restoration will be sympathetic to these values as well as to its unique heritage and historical importance. It is expected that the €1.2 million works will have minimal impact on pedestrian and traffic movement and will be undertaken in two phases.
SSE Airtricity Utility Solutions Ltd. has been selected by Cork City Council to undertake phase 1 preliminary works and they have appointed renowned Italian lighting restoration specialists, Neri to complete the project. Neri has worked extensively in Dublin including on lighting restoration at O’Connell Bridge. The existing four heritage standards (lamp columns) on St Patrick’s Bridge will be removed during the week commencing February 5th and an additional four standards, currently in storage, will be sent to Italy for repair and restoration.
This will involve returning the columns to their original unpainted bare metal state, repairing weather damage, protecting and repainting the standards. As part of this process, moulds will also be created to make additional duplicates columns. Upon completion, the 12 restored/replicated standards will be returned to the bridge in September complete with new lantern heads with LED fittings where they will be remounted just as when the bridge was first built. In the interim period, six standard temporary lighting columns will be put in place to help illuminate the footpaths during darkness.
Cork City Council is in the process of issuing a tender for phase two of the works which it expects will begin in early May. This phase of the works involves the removal of all vegetation and algae from the bridge, the cleaning and repair of all stonework and the re-pointing of missing or defective masonry joints. Proposed works also include the replacement of the footpath and carriageway surfacing together and new road markings. Existing traffic lights, elevation and architectural lighting and directional signage will also be upgraded.
It is expected that all works to St. Patrick’s Bridge will be completed by mid October.
St Vincent’s Bridge: A tender is also due to be launched next month for critical maintenance work on St Vincent’s Bridge which connects the North Mall and Sunday’s Well to the junction of Bachelor’s Quay and Grenville Place. Detailed design to assure the continued usage of this bridge is being progressed. As part of these works, lighting on the bridge will also be improved.
Daly’s Bridge: Refurbishment works will also begin on the iconic Daly’s Bridge in September this year to repair extensive corrosion and damage.
A tender has been launched seeking consultants to undertake design and civil works preparation. It is intended to award this contract by the end of next month. A contract for the civil works will be tendered in the coming months with a programme of works likely to start on site in September. The Department for Transport, Tourism and Sport is funding the project.