A 169-year-old bridge over the River Dee, which closed to traffic in 2019, has failed to secure Scottish Government funding for repairs.
Local MSP, Alexander Burnett has said “it’s disgraceful” that Park Bridge has not been included in Scotland’s £32 million Local Bridge Maintenance Fund.
New figures obtained by Mr Burnett from the Scottish Government show just five out of the nine applications made to the fund by Aberdeenshire Council were successful.
The funding has instead been given to the A98 Banff Bridge, the A93 Invercauld Bridge, the A93 Auchallater Bridge near Braemar, the A93 Inver Underpass and the A939 Luib Bridge at Strathdon.
Drivers faced with eight-mile diversion
Park Bridge closed to all vehicles back in February 2019, after a routine inspection found serious defects.
The historically A-listed structure dates back to 1854, and was commonly used by residents on either side of the river for everyday travel.
But since its closure, drivers have been faced with an eight-mile diversion.
Alexander Burnett, along with the Park Bridge Action Group, the community council and Andrew Bowie MP, have all been campaigning to have it reopened.
Mr Burnett, said: “While I welcome the funding award for other key bridges in Aberdeenshire, this is only the tip of the iceberg and it’s disgraceful that Park Bridge is still being overlooked.
“The bridge connected the two areas for nearly 170 years and this funding revelation is a hammer blow to the Drumoak and Durris communities which have been separated by the closure.
“More than 60 bridges in Aberdeenshire still need to be repaired by 2030 and the Scottish Government must increase funding to the local authority so all of these repairs can take place for the safety of users.
“Missing out on vital funding like this does little to ease the concerns of residents who are rightly angry about being forced to make a 15-mile detour.
“This saga has gone on for long enough and locals deserve and need this bridge to be reopened.”
‘More than 60 bridges in Aberdeenshire need to be repaired by 2030’
Alexander Burnett previously launched a petition in 2021 to repair and reopen Park Bridge which gathered almost 500 signatures.
In a response to Mr Burnett’s follow-up question asking the Scottish Government what other funding is available, transport minister Fiona Hyslop said: “The Scottish Government has no additional plans to provide specific funding for local road bridges.
“However, an additional £793 million cash funding has been provided to local government in 2023-24.
“It is the responsibility of each local authority to manage their own budget and to allocate the financial resources available to them on the basis of local needs and priorities, having first fulfilled their statutory obligations and the jointly agreed set of national and local priorities.”
