Residents bemoan money spent on new railway footbridge that's 'attracting ridicule'
Some residents are less than impressed with a new type of railway bridge that was launched with a fanfare across the line at Craven Arms.
The FLOW bridge - Fibre-reinforced, Lower cost, Optimised design, Working bridge - is a new experimental design of footbridge and Network Rail put it there to replace a 'dangerous level crossing' - but some in the area aren't going with this particular flow.
Chris Naylor, the acting chair of Church Stretton and Craven Arms Lib Dems, said the bridge is "in the middle of nowhere" and is "attracting local ridicule" because it is "connecting a field to a field and does not have ramps for wheelchairs, bikes et cetera".
Network Rail says the bridge does replace what was a dangerous level crossing on the fast railway line, and there is a fully accessible bridge just 200m away.
Mr Naylor says locals have criticised the bridge for being a "waste of money and time" and a "typical disgraceful waste of taxpayer money", and are asking "what has happened to common sense?".
Mr Naylor said: "In the middle of the fields, it appears to connect two hardly-used footpaths - both of which end up on busy roads, and don’t connect with either local towns or villages. Nor does it link to the old Roman Road byway immediately adjacent.
"Apparently part of the attractively-named 'Wart Hill Wander' - the sign for which is hidden behind years of hedge - the new bridge might have had a role if Shropshire Council’s recent 'levelling-up' bid for Craven Arms had succeeded.
