Havant railway station footbridge partial closure sparks calls for action

Talks of replacing the ‘eyesore’ bridge have been ongoing for 10 years, with plans never coming to fruition.

The bridge is owned by Hampshire County Council, which closed the northeast leg of the bridge indefinitely due to degradation.

Speaking to full council yesterday, Havant Borough councillor Tim Pike, cabinet lead for levelling up said: ‘As a borough council I think we should be concerned about this.

'It’s probably the most important walking asset within the borough in terms of helping people move around the town centre, avoiding the roads.

‘We are pushing the county council to bring forward plans for its replacement in line with our regeneration plans and our published vision for the town centre.

‘Many of you will know the history that Councillor Kendall promised us ten years ago when the scaffolding was put in.

‘The scaffolding has remained there for ten years and many of you would agree that it is an eyesore - it is a theme commonly brought up to me by businesses saying the welcome to the town centre is one of the most important things we could be working on.

Cllr Pike reminded members that £679,000 has been allocated under the transforming cities fund to improve walking and cycling paths to the footbridge.

He added this will be ‘quite bizarre if the footbridge isn’t accessible’.

The county council is currently submitting a bid to central government for a new replacement bridge as part of the Levelling Up fund.