RESIDENTS concerned about the public safety of Warburton’s Brisbane Hill Bridge have been assured that a major overhaul is due to begin in the second half of the year.
In the meantime, Yarra Ranges Council will install signs on the existing bridge to improve awareness among pedestrians of the potential hazards of the existing timber deck.
But as a result of contacting the council after a resident slipped and fell on the bridge last June, she received a letter that stated “this bridge is not intended for pedestrian traffic and no designated pedestrian paths are provided for that reason”.
Several residents have contacted the Mail upon learning about the letter and say that contradicts the history documented about the bridge since it was built in 1936 and works that have occurred recently by the council.
Countless numbers of tourists use it on the weekends and locals in the Brisbane Hill area walk across it to get to town, with no signage ever existing that designated it as a “vehicle only” bridge.
The council itself rebuilt the pedestrian ramp from the picnic area carpark on the north side to the base of the bridge, and the pedestrian footpath on the south side also leads to the bridge.
The riverside maps encourage tourists to walk along the river trails and across several bridges including Brisbane Hill Bridge.
The Mail has spoken to the lady who fell on the bridge, who does not wish to be named, but spoke about her experience because she was concerned for the safety of others.
“When I’ve shown people the letter their jaws dropped because even life-long residents don’t believe that’s the case with that bridge,” she said.
“In denying pedestrian access across the bridge they’re denying disabled access,” she said, saying it was ridiculous to think people were required to walk 400 metres up or downstream to cross the river.
Passionate advocate for Warburton, Ben Aldridge said the bridge had been deteriorating for at least seven years now, with the boards looking like they’d rotted through in some areas and sticking up at the ends.
“There is a big need for a dedicated pedestrian crossing and soon … I have seen many tourists families, children, walking across it, looking up at the wonderful views and there could be a serious accident there,” he said.
Warburton resident Megan Wallens told the Mail, and reiterated in a letter to the editor, that there was an urgent need for the situation to be addressed as was promised two years ago.
“The question is who or what is permitted legally to cross the bridge?” she wrote.
“Does the council seriously suggest that pedestrians who wish to reach the other side of the river – to go to the Post Office or to visit Chisholm Park, for example – must walk an extra kilometre or two along rough bush tracks beside the river?
“What about the elderly, those in wheelchairs or with prams to push?”
Yarra Ranges Council Engineering Director Mark Varmalis said the major overhaul would include the construction of a dedicated adjoining pedestrian footbridge, but the council was still creating new design plans for renewing the bridge.
“The Brisbane Bridge in Warburton is of local heritage value so our engineers have been consulting with our heritage experts to ensure any plans are sensitive to that,” he said.
“We wanted to make sure the new design was sympathetic to the existing structure while considering safety and access for all users as well as the aesthetic appeal.”
He said they were originally going to use a timber decking system but that product was no longer available.
“We are now working with a consultant to create new design plans for renewing the bridge deck and other components of the bridge,” he said.
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Bridging back story
The Brisbane Hill Bridge was originally called the Warren truss bridge, named after the design that was used. It was built in 1936 to replace the two-decker Richards Bridge that was built to carry logs from the train station to Richards mill, which was damaged in a fire in 1913.
