FINGAL County Council has confirmed that Portmarnock Bridge will close for repair work from 10am on Wednesday, September 14, and re-open on Monday, September 26 at the latest.
The council said it is likely, subject to the progress of the work, that the bridge will be open before the September 26.
It said the contractor will be working extended hours on Saturday and Sunday and as a result, it has been possible to reduce the time for full time closure.
There had been fears locally that the work could take up to four weeks to complete.
Because of the impact on traffic in the Portmarnock/Malahide area the council said it has been focused on ensuring that the period of full closure is as short as possible and that inconvenience to the community and residents is minimised.
“We will be giving regular updates to keep people advised,” a spokeswoman for the council told Northside People.
Variable Messaging Signs (VMS) will be operational on both approaches to the bridge from Monday, September 5 advising of the closure.
The replacement of the bridge is now necessary because of its current unsatisfactory condition which has been prioritised following an inspection of the 123 bridges across the county for which Fingal is responsible. The original Portmarnock Bridge was built in 1900 and underwent widening/reconstruction in 1933. The construction date of the current bridge deck is unknown.
The council said that fully replacing the deck now will avoid a series of closures in the future to carry out necessary ongoing repairs, and remove any uncertainty about the functionality of the bridge for the foreseeable future. A draft Traffic Management Plan is being finalised in consultation with An Garda Síochána and Dublin Bus which will include:
• Diversion of HGVs from the area to the Malahide Road.
• Temporary traffic lights on key junctions on the Druimnigh Road which will also be manned.
• Key existing traffic controlled junctions will also be monitored.
Dublin Bus is expected to advise of their revised bus routes shortly.
Works on a temporary pedestrian bridge and path to connect Strand Road to Station Road will commence on Monday, September 5. The issue of building a temporary bridge for vehicular traffic during the closure was raised but the council made a number of points in respect of that proposal including:
• The eastern side of the existing bridge is a Special Area of Conservation (SAC).
• Using the western side would create difficulties for vehicles using a temporary vehicular bridge.
Coming from the Portmarnock Village side heading to Baldoyle, such a proposal would involve two 90 degree bends very close to one another before crossing the river and forming a T junction on the already constricted Station Road, which would give rise to conflicts with other road users, including pedestrians.
The layout/geometry of the crossing would also create significant traffic delay and management issues.
• The construction of a temporary road and bridge would necessitate significant excavations and involve substantially more HGVs. This would lead to further delays for periods on Station Road and Strand Road during construction.
Regular updates on the work will be available at www.facebook.com/fingalcoco and Twitter @Fingalcoco
