Ludlow's damaged Ludford Bridge won't open for May bank holiday weekend after all

With Ludlow town centre set to be filled with fairground rides from Thursday and across the bank holiday, it was hoped work on Ludford Bridge, at the town's southern entrance, would be complete.

It is now thought the Grade-I listed bridge across the River Teme, which has been closed since February, will reopen no sooner than mid-May, council bosses have said.

Andy Boddington, Shropshire councillor for Ludlow North, said he feared for the effect on the town centre over the coming weekend.

"I fear it will damage trade in Ludlow over the next week. This is Mayfair week, it is the greatest spectacle in town," he said.

"The May bank holiday is one of the busiest weekends in the year in Ludlow. We are likely to see a big increase in traffic."

However, Simon Jones, Shropshire Council's cabinet member for highways and transportation, said: "There is likely to be minimal traffic disruption in the town with Ludford Bridge remaining closed.

"Car parks are clearly signed from all approaches into Ludlow, along with the Ludford Bridge diversion signing. Pedestrian access over Ludford Bridge will not be affected."

He said the only other option was to take down the scaffolding and then put it back up after, which would delay the work further and cost between £10,000 and £15,000 extra to do.

He said: "We continue to work with Ringway to ensure that the work is completed as soon as practicably possible: initial thoughts are that it may be possible to complete the repair work by May 13."

A mix of retrieved stone and new stone is now being used to rebuild the bridge, but must be done with lime mortar using traditional methods, which needs dry, warm weather to set.