No decision has yet been made on what will happen to the
timber from the historic twin bridges at Kurow once they are
demolished.
The single-lane bridges, across the Waitaki River, will be
replaced by two-lane structures. Construction could start in
2012 and be completed by 2014 if funding was available.
An article in the Kurow community newsletter Bugle said the
bridges had played a "huge part" in the history of developing
the Waitaki Valley.
The old bridges, which were originally built for both road
and rail traffic, opened in 1881.
It was time to plan how best to commemorate the "noble"
structures and preserve their timber to form lasting
reminders and ideas were being sought, the article said.
When contacted, New Zealand Transport Agency South Canterbury
area manager Colin Hey said there had been plenty of
expressions of interest in the timber but no decisions had
been made.
It was expected the first call for any sound timber would be
for the local authority for bridging or structural work and
that would probably be in conjunction with Historic Places
Trust requirements.
Some sort of interpretative structure would be installed, or
a memento of the old bridges. It was anticipated that various
proposals from different organisations would then be looked
at.
Bookmark/Search this post with:
A name, residential address, and (preferably residential) telephone number is required from readers who comment on ODT Online. These details will not be visible to site visitors.