Railway bridge road closure warning

Network Rail has announced that a stretch of Bradley Lane in Standish will be shut between 9am and 3pm on February 12.

The bridge, which is located where the road below it narrows to one lane and is controlled by traffic lights, requires structural examination by expert engineers from the body tasked with maintaining the railway infrastructure.

The road is a busy route in and out of Standish, joining the centre to Chorley Road and also running past the Bradley Lane Trading Estate. It is not the first time the road near the bridge has had to be shut for work and one Standish resident has suggested the authorities should possibly bite the bullet and look at a lengthier closure so the problem can be fully dealt with in one go.

He said: “The problems with that bridge have been going on for so long now. It’s about time they sorted it out properly rather than continually coming back to do bits of work.

“When it was built there was a lot less traffic on the road and even though it’s a single carriageway at that point it’s quite a busy diversionary route.

“It’s about time it was sorted, particualrly when the population of Standish is growing and new estate are being built all over the place.”

A diversion will be in place during the day of works via Bradley Lane, Platt Lane, Chorley Road, Rectory Lane, Preston Road and Avondale Street.

It is hoped that carrying out the work on a Sunday will minimise disruption for drivers.

A Network Rail spokesman said: “We will be carrying out a routine detailed structural examination of the railway bridge on Sunday February 12. To do this safely a road closure will be in place to determine if any repair work is required.”