P-05-1094 Stop the erosion of Pontypridd’s heritage - save the White Bridge, Correspondence – Petitioner to Committee, 27.01.21
I shall be sending, by post, a copy, on 3 disks, of the information I received via an FoI from RCTCBC. The attached documents give you a flavour of what RCTCBC hasn't been doing to protect the structural integrity of this bridge since 2008 and it's lack concern for the safety of the public by not closing the bridge in 2018 if the reports were to be given their full weight. Alternately RCTCBC were not convinced of the strength of argument put forward by the engineers they engaged. Again, this does not bode well for how RCTCBC will consider any further reports in relation to this structure.
Furthermore, at my suggestion a geologist was engaged to carry out a visual inspection of the location and whilst there is no paper trail of this visit or conclusion. I understand that the geologist implied that the bridge was currently stopping the houses built on the spoil of the railway cutting on eastern embankment from sliding into the Taf. The geologist stated that there was no indication of any bedrock on which to locate foundations for a new bridge should demolition approval be granted. Apparently the Taff Vale Railway bridge slightly north of the Berw bridge is constructed on the only close to the surface rock in the vicinity!
railway bridges in pontypridd - Bing images
One area that is concerning is the lack of enforcement powers CADW has. As can be seen from the structural reports RCTCBC has had compiled over the years (I can only go back to 2008) the council has done nothing to repair or protect the bridge. If this were the case of a privately owned structure the council would be taking action via the available legislation Building Act 1984 (legislation.gov.uk)
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Building Act 1984 - Legislation.gov.uk Defective premises, demolition etc. E+W 76 Defective premises. E+W (1) If it appears to a local authority that— (a) any premises are in such a state (in this section referred to as a “defective state”) as to be prejudicial to health or a nuisance, and (b) unreasonable delay in remedying the defective state would be occasioned by following the procedure prescribed by [F1 section 80 of the ... |
One could view it as blatant disregard for a part of the heritage of Pontypridd, Wales and the UK serving no purpose other than to save money. Obviously there can't have been anyone in RCTCBC who had seen CADW's guidance on the matter or else action would have been taken years ago. No doubt if this listed building is destroyed because of political negligence any proposed replacement to divert traffic from a main road through a residential area will be funded by the public via the Welsh Government settlement and council tax increases.
Why Maintenance Matters | Cadw (gov.wales)
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Why Maintenance Matters | Cadw There are many good reasons for undertaking regular building maintenance. It can help you to: Retain your building’s maximum value, particularly when original architectural features are still present. cadw.gov.wales |
I am in the process of receiving comment from structural engineers and will hopefully be able to add to my response before noon on February 1st.
Yours sincerely,