Temporary footbridge closed due to safety concerns

A temporary footbridge built to replace a crossing over a river has been shut due to safety concerns.

Derby City Council said it had identified erosion to the River Derwent riverbank at the Darley Abbey temporary footbridge, known as Walter's Walkway.

The crossing was installed over the original structure in October 2022 at a reported cost of about £300,000.

Rob Ellis, who runs Darleys Restaurant & Terrace nearby, said: "[The closure] is going to have a massive impact on us."

The city council said on Monday that over the weekend, the bank under Old Lane had been "undercut" and the closure would need to remain shut "for everyone's safety" while it worked to "stabilise the situation".

The council, the Environment Agency and partners plan to use a radio-controlled boat to investigate the extent of the erosion to the bank and riverbed "as it is too risky for people to be working in the water".

Mr Ellis told the BBC when the original bridge closed for five months before a temporary one was installed, he lost 70% of his customers and added the drop-off would probably happen again.

"We lose one side of the river, people who would walk over will not bother coming, because it's a 30-minute walk around the park to get to us," he said.

"I'm hoping people don't cancel [their Christmas reservations] but there's a strong possibility now because of the bridge closing.

"I offered to pick people up last time, but people do like to walk over the bridge."

A Derby City Council spokesperson said: "There are indications that erosion has progressed further over the weekend, and evidence that the bank on the Old Lane side of the river has been undercut.

"We are also investigating the potential impact to utilities which run across the old bridge.

"We are working hard to try to stabilise the situation and limit any further deterioration of the embankment, but this depends on us understanding the full impact of the erosion.

"The decision was not taken lightly to close the bridge and all agencies involved in this work understand its importance to the community."

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