Bridge lighting under review after safety concerns

1 day ago

Ivan Morris Poxton,Local Democracy Reporting Serviceand

Eleanor Maslin,East Yorkshire and Lincolnshire

News image — Warning signs will be installed and lighting will be reviewed at Fuller Street bridge in Cleethorpes

Google Google street view of the Fuller Street bridge, which is a grey metal structure standing alongside a metal fence with grassland behind it. There is a road in front and a One Way blue sign with a white arrow pointing to the left. — Warning signs will be installed and lighting will be reviewed at Fuller Street bridge in Cleethorpes

A bridge at the centre of safety concerns will have its lighting reviewed, a council said.

More than 200 people signed a petition calling for safety improvements at Fuller Street Bridge in Cleethorpes.

North East Lincolnshire Council (NELC) said it would look at the levels of lighting in the area to see if the lamps can be enhanced, but added new lighting was "unlikely".

On Monday, councillor Ron Shepherd approved new signage to make people aware the area is unlit but did not "want to commit a lot of money" due to the "poor condition" of the bridge.

The petition to provide better lighting around the North Wall area was set up last year by Melanie Onn, the MP for Great Grimsby and Cleethorpes.

However, a NELC report has stated the "levels of investment" to cover bridge lighting and CCTV would be "disproportionate to the recorded crime levels".

UK Parliament Melanie Onn has dark eyes and dyed red hair. She is wearing a mauve top and a thin dark metal necklace while smiling into the camera. — The MP for Great Grimsby and Cleethorpes, Melanie Onn, has called for better safety measures in Cleethorpes

At a council meeting on Monday, Shepherd described Fuller Street bridge as being in "a poor condition" but "usable".

"The bridge itself, in my opinion, will be something that within the next 10 years that we have to make a decision about whether it should stay or go," he added.

In response, councillor Sophie Farren reiterated the fact that more than 200 people had signed a petition about the bridge's safety.

"I would like you to consider a compromise position that may be some lighting at least to illuminate signage and to offer reassurance and a longer trial of the CCTV," she said.

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, a rapid deployment camera, which was installed last year, would remain at the bridge for three more months before it is reviewed.

The new signs would highlight the risk of walking in the area due to "unlit, uneven ground" with the additional tidal risk of the sea wall, NELC said.

The signs, to be installed in the next three months, would also recommend people use Suggitt's Lane bridge, which is "fully lit and accessible" and a safer alternative for those wishing to cross the railway.

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