Saxilby's historic footbridge has returned to its rightful place after refurbishment

Saxilby footbridge, which crosses the Fossdyke, is back in its place after its refurbishment

The bridge was successfully lifted into place by crane and it is now to undergo up to ten working days of onsite remedials to get the bridge fully operational to the public.

The remedial works include fixing of the stanchions, bolting all the sections of the bridge together, installing the last sections of GRP decking and making good.

The bridge colour has also been changed from green to black, which was a request of the Parish Council to compliment the wider plans Saxilby Parish Council has for the area.

West Lindsey District Councillor Paul Lee who represents the Saxilby ward, was pleased at how much work has gone into the whole project.

He said: “It’s great to see the footbridge back in its place over the Fossdyke once again.

“To see the bridge in its different repair stages compared to its renewed condition has been very interesting and I hope the local community will enjoy the footbridge being back and better than ever.”

Luke Matthews, Senior Projects and Buildings Officer was delighted to see the success of the lift.

He said: “It was great to see the bridge back in its rightful place all repaired and restored for up to 25 years.

“This has been an interesting project to work on and I would like to thank Universal Coatings for their hard work and determination on this project.

“We hope the residents of Saxilby enjoy the benefit of the bridge for many years to come.”

Philip Bingham, managing director at Universal Coatings UK, said: “We are delighted that the footbridge is back in place after months of hard work from our talented team who make projects like these successful.

“It’s been great to work with West Lindsey District Council and we look forward to see the bridge fully operational soon.”

The steel footbridge was gifted to the village by British Rail in 1986.

Past remedial works on the bridge were carried out in 2011 including replacing the timber decking with new anti slip decking, remedial rust treatment where accessible and scraping off loose paint.