Work to start on repairing Worcester's Powick Old Bridge
The bridge has been closed since partially collapsing in January
One of the first stages in the long-term repair of Powick Old Bridge is set to start today.
Famous for its roles in the English Civil War, the bridge has been closed since the end of January following a partial collapse.
Jon Fraser is part of the Senior Highways Management team at Worcester County Council, and says it's an exciting step to getting the bridge re-open again.
He said: "I'm very pleased to confirm that we'll be starting the work to restore Powick old Bridge.
"The contractor will be setting up a side compound and bringing the relevant materials to site, they'll then start to create an access route to the bridge, with the view of establishing a working platform in the river.
"It's a very important historic structure, being the site of the first and last battles of the English Civil War, and the Battle of Worcester Society and Worcester Civic Society and a lot of people are very interested in this.
"People can be reassured, we will treat it with the respect that such a historic structure deserves, and where possible, we we will re-use as much of the existing material that we can recover from the river."
The council say these temporary works will be followed by detailed design of a permanent reconstruction, which will require further approvals ahead of final works next year.