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Tuesday 19 Dec 2023

Footbridge successfully removed at Dumfries station

Region & Route:

Scotland’s Railway: Scotland

Dumfries station footbridge was successfully removed over the course of Saturday night (16 December).

The footbridge, which connects platforms one and two at the station, was taken out of use on Saturday morning to allow engineers to prepare for its removal that evening.

Engineers took just minutes to lift the bridge deck (middle part of bridge), weighing 21 tonnes, off before placing it on a trombone trailer, with the help of a 300-tonne crane.

A team of engineers will dismantle the remaining columns and stairs over the course of this week.

It’s all part of the ‘Access for All’ project to provide step-free access at the station, making it easier for those with limited mobility or travelling with children, luggage or cycles to move between the platforms.

Rod Hendry, Network Rail’s construction manager for the Dumfries Access for All project said: “We are extremely happy with how the bridge removal went on Saturday night. This step was vital for the rest of the works to continue and everything went without a hitch.

“The works will wrap up on Friday ahead of the festive period and will start back up in the new year to allow us to complete our work on the new bridge, which is set to open in Summer 2024.”

“Again, we would like to thank passengers of Dumfries for their patience and understanding as we carry out this work.”

Train services will continue to operate as normal during the rest of the project, which is due for completion in Summer next year.

During that time a diversionary route along St Mary Street will continue to be in operation to take passengers between the platforms. Passengers should leave additional time for their journey to reflect this.

In the meantime, the bridge deck has been placed in storage while a suitable permanent home is found for it.