A scheme to erect a safety barrier at Aberdeen’s Union Bridge has been slated by the city centre’s community council.
Aberdeen City Council is seeking planning permission to create a barrier at the bridge in a bid to stop people climbing over the parapet.
They have put forward this latest initiative after a similar application was rejected last year because of its design.
The authority’s new proposal, which is still awaiting a decision by the council’s planning committee, details plans to instal a large metal barrier, extending up from the black portions of the bridge, stretching several feet into the air and forming an arc over the pavement.
Historic Environment Scotland has not objected to the plans, but Dustin Macdonald, chairman of the city centre community council, said his organisation was unlikely to support the proposal.
Mr Macdonald said: “Last time round, we objected to the design based on the local development plan, because we need to make sure all developments are in keeping with the heritage of Aberdeen.
“It’s still going to take a number of days before we decide on this application, but right now it looks like we’re going to object.
“The planning committee rejected the previous barrier on this policy last time, and now we have got the exact same application re-submitted.
“We really don’t feel it respects the history of Union Bridge.
“It’s one of the longest single-spanning granite bridges in the world, and of course it’s home to the famous Kelly’s Cats.
“But a major problem we have with it is that it doesn’t include the granite corners of Union Bridge, where you can still easily climb up and over if you wanted to.
“We’ve been told that it simply wouldn’t work physically, but if we are to get a barrier, it should cover as much of the bridge as possible.
“We’ve never disagreed about putting in something that can help prevent people harming themselves or others, and there’s no denying it would be a major benefit to the city, but this is just too similar to the previous application for us.”
Temporary fencing was put up on the bridge in July to prevent attempts to climb over the bridge’s parapets.
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