Problems with Achill bridge going on too long

Problems with Achill bridge going on too long


Anton McNulty

PROBLEMS affecting the new Michael Davitt Bridge connection Achill Island with the mainland, which have prevented it from operating properly, have been going on for too long and need to be resolved, according to a local councillor.
The €5m Michael Davitt swing-bridge has not been able to function properly for a number of months because of problems with the opening and closing of the barriers. The new bridge has been dogged with minor problems since construction was completed in December of 2008 - which at the time was up to seven months behind schedule.
Shortly after it was opened, remedial work had to be carried out to stabilise the structure from the wind. Metal ropes were placed between the steel structures on both sides of the bridge after the bridge started to vibrate in the wind. This autumn it was revealed that the barriers were not working properly and as a result the bridge could not swing. Problems also occurred to the lighting system on the bridge which has resulted in it being in darkness since October.
Achill councillor, MicheΡl McNamara told The Mayo News that these problems affecting the bridge were not good enough and it should be working perfectly at this stage.
“These issues are relatively minor but one way or the other the bridge should be operating perfectly at this stage. It is over a year since it was opened to traffic and a lot of money, expertise, and time has been put into the bridge. At this stage, whenever it is asked to be opened it should be operating perfectly and these issues need to be solved,” he said.
There were also fears locally that there were problems with the mechanism of the bridge but this was refuted by Mayo County Council Engineer, Michael Corley who told The Mayo News that the problems with the barriers have been rectified and they were now in a position to swing it.
“The barriers on the bridge were locking but work was done on the barriers in November and December and the problem has been rectified. They changed the controls and they have not locked since that. We tried to get it swung before the Christmas and in the New Year but we were short staffed because of the weather and next week we hope to get it swung. There is no problem with the bridge swinging and it could be done in the morning if we wanted to,” he said.
Mr Corley added that there was a problem with some of the lights on the bridge which were dimming and they were all taken out to be replaced. He said he spoke to the installer - a company called Lightwise Architectural Illumination based out of Cork  before the Christmas and now expected them to be installed by the end of January.
“There was a fault with some of the units which were dimming and it was decided to take all of the 24 lights out and replace them. Lightwise is a one-man outfit based out of Cork and it took a while for him to get up here and take a look at them. The problem is in hand and the lights should be reinstalled by the end of the month,” he concluded.