The council is to spend half a million pounds on the footbridge at Hove Station over the next two years.
But it won’t become any easier to use for people with disabilities, including wheelchair users and those with limited or no vision, nor mothers with buggies nor even train passengers with luggage.
The cost of maintaining the grade II listed 19th century bridge emerged during a question time session with councillors at Hove Town Hall last Thursday (14 December).
And at an earlier meeting, councillors were told that it would cost about £20 million to remove and replace the old bridge.
At the final Brighton and Hove City Council meeting of the year, Rohan Lowe, from the advocacy charity Speak Out, asked a couple of questions.
Mr Lowe asked: “What ideas are being looked at on improving the current Hove Station footbridge … so that it is more accessible for people with disabilities?
“Given that the current station footbridge is close to a major visually impaired base and several supported living houses for people with disabilities, will the council be taking this into account?”
Labour councillor Trevor Muten said that the council had budgeted £250,000 for maintenance of the bridge both this year and next.
The council inherited its responsibility for the bridge from an agreement made in the 1880s between the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway Company and the Hove commissioners – forerunners of the council.
But while the council is meant to maintain the bridge, it remains in the ownership of Network Rail, along with all the railway track and other infrastructure.
Councillor Muten, who chairs the council’s Transport and Sustainability Committee, said that the historic footbridge was built without the level of accessibility that would be required today.
The councillor, who represents Goldsmid ward which includes the Hove Station area, said: “We do need to take into account the local communities and those people who most need to get across this railway.
“It is really inadequate as the bridge does not provide accessibility options for many local residents and people who need to use the station.
“There is quite a lot to do to solve this and – as a ward councillor and chair of Transport and Sustainability – I am passionate about solving this.
“I’ll be working with Network Rail and other partners to get that accessible route across the station to make it much easier for everyone to cross.”
Last month a report to the Transport and Sustainability Committee suggested that removing and replacing the bridge would cost more than £20 million.
The report followed a residents’ deputation in July, calling for a new pedestrian and cycle bridge over the railway, linking the big new Moda Living site, in Sackville Road, with the station car park.
Moda Living has supported the suggestion of a new bridge by offering land and £70,000 towards design funding.
But as yet, there is no commitment from the council, Moda or Network Rail to design or construct such a bridge.
Mothers with buggies? Don’t worry the fathers with buggies are either hench enough to carry them or fly like daleks up stairs.
#EverydaySexism – how disappointing.
Did the compassionate and sentimental, but non-real-world spending of the Green Party impact on this dilemma?
No wonder B&H have no money. Network rail should pay. They make the money. I am 81 and a realist. Take it off the listed status. Get with it. It was the Greens who made my decision to move out of Brighton. The money they waste !!!
HJ
It’s not a council decision as to whether it is listed or not.
All the council have done is kick this down the road for another two years. Well done Hove Council another bunch of gutless wanders with no grit. Inform network rail you won’t support the status quo anymore, do a deal, share the cost and get a new bridge built.
“Just do a deal.”
You’re not a contract lawyer are you 🙄
£20 million to remove or replace… Thats ‘not true’. Footbridges across major road, rivers etc are built for far far less than that.
Plucking high figures out of the air is just a tactic for inertia.
I imagine we also have to consider if it’s listed there are limitations on how it is constructed and what materials to use. It’s not unheard of that these increase the cost substantially, but I also share your wariness of high figures being quoted.
Pretty extraordinary that the structure is in the ownership of Network Rail but that the council is liable for the entire costs of maintenance. Seem to recall from a while back that one reason for the inaction (this has been going on for years) was that there was a wrangle over responsibility.
According to above report, bridge is owned by Network Rail. A historic bridge, not fit for purpose in regards to modern requirements. As I see it, it’s down to NR to do something about it, not expect to lumber local ratepayers with costs. No doubt that if council told NR its your problem, sort it, then NR would find a way of dealing with it for a bit less than 20 million.what idiot dreamt up such a ridiculous figure?
It would appear that the best solution may be to create a new bridge from the carpark and accept the generous offers made.
I believe that quite a few stations have assault course bridges.
The article also states why it is the financial responsibility of the council due to a historic agreement. How you see it doesn’t really matter.
wouldn’t it be possible to build a lift at each end of the bridge?
Potentially, and also an extremely expensive option with maintenance costs attached to it, and additional liabilities should someone injure themselves using them or become stuck. Plus open to vandalism as it’s not always a high-flow area. Certainly an option, though!
Remember when they where telling us all about how the new development on sackville road would bring that much revenue and use to British rail Well they forgot to mention anything about the dilapidated bridge and how once again the public would have to pay for it
It can’t cost that much, there must be standard designs with modularised systems to use to help drive costs down?
£20 million????? Who on earth made that up??
20 million pounds? I cannot believe that’s true. Are you kidding me? Abandon that one and build a new one
£20 million could purchase about forty frogs for making the bridge, ribbit ribbit
What would be the point of linking the ‘new’ bridge to the Sackville estate? Have you seen the steps down onto Sackville Road, not exactly friendly for anyone. Anyway many of the passengers would want to come South or East.
Another waste of money plan
Even the Madera Terraces knows how to get ignored and left to rust and rot
Our council are useless
Genuine question, do you just copy paste a template stock reply to everything?