Tyne Bridge's rusted steelwork could be turned into art celebrating North East icon's restoration
by Daniel Holland · ChronicleLivePieces of rusted metal removed from the Tyne Bridge could be turned into artwork to celebrate the North East icon’s restoration.
Between six and seven tonnes of corroded bolts, rivets, and huge pieces of steelwork have already been replaced, 11 months into the four-year repair project to return the bridge to its former glory. The removal of much of the scaffolding around the bridge’s Gateshead tower has revealed a large repainted section of the structure – and highlighted the stark contrast with the faded paint on the areas still awaiting repairs.
A variety of rusted artefacts salvaged during the maintenance works are also now on display in a small exhibit at the Tyne Bridge restoration project’s information hub, located on Lombard Street on the Newcastle Quayside, giving the public a chance to see firsthand just how badly deteriorated the grade II* listed crossing had become. But it is also hoped that they could yet have a future as part of sculptures and other art installations to mark the bridge’s 100th anniversary celebrations in 2028.
Talks have already been held about involving design students from local colleges and universities to make use of the historic objects, most of which have been put into storage at a warehouse in Washington. Alistair Swan, Newcastle City Council’s principal engineer, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: “There is an aspiration that we can do some kind of art installation or something that can celebrate the centenary, making use of the scrap materials. We will see what can be salvaged and collected over the next couple of years, then at some point there could be a design competition or something to come up with a creation that would celebrate the bridge.”
Gareth Dawson, project manager for contractors Esh, added that visitors to the Quayside exhibit are quickly drawn to the quite frightening state of the materials which have held up a bridge carrying up to 70,000 vehicles per day. He said: “This is proof that we aren’t just doing a painting job, it is in need of real structural repair.
“The steel we are taking out is not in a good condition, it needs taking out for good reason and this gives everyone a sense of the work that is going on.”
More than 1,000 separate steelwork repairs will be carried out during the restoration, as well as grit blasting and re-painting, concrete repairs, drainage improvements, stonework and masonry repairs, waterproofing and resurfacing, parapet protection and bridge joint replacement. And it is not only rusted metal that has been removed by engineers.
Nine tonnes of pigeon muck has also had to be scraped out by Esh staff working in the tight confines of the 1.5m-high void underneath the bridge’s eastern footway – a working environment made all the more unpleasant by the disgusting sludge-like substance that has built up over the years as the guano has mixed with water leaking beneath the bridge deck.
The guano is classed as hazardous waste which has to be taken away by a specialist subcontractor to be disposed of, and cannot be recycled to be used in fertiliser because it has been contaminated with corroded steel. Mr Swan confirmed that new galvanised steel mesh is being installed as part of the bridge’s restoration in the hope of preventing pigeons getting into the various nooks and crannies in the way they can now.
Visitors to the Lombard Street exhibit can also see one of the original medals given to the workers who built the bridge a century ago, as well as a brochure from its official opening by King George V in October 1928. It also features behind the scenes images from the restoration, a virtual reality headset tour of the bridge and its history, and a Lego model of the famous structure. The information hub is open for members of the public to drop in from 10am to 2pm on weekdays.
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