Ref. 26035-4A COSTLY maintenance project is under way to preserve a picturesque Bradford on Avon bridge.
Skilled stonemasons and blacksmiths have started a £160,000 refurbishment programme on 14th century Barton Bridge to repair stonework and railings.
Tim Jones, Wiltshire County Council highways improvement manager, said the project covers essential maintenance work.
He said: "The bridge gets a fierce pounding when the river floods.
"This is an expensive project but it is very labour intensive and specialist work for the masons involved.
"They will spend a lot of time working under the bridge floating on fragile pontoons to repair the underneath."
Minerva Stone Conservation Ltd of Bradford on Avon has been commissioned to carry out the work with the project due to be completed by early November.
Bath stone will be used to replace damaged stone and the metal railings will be repaired and strengthened. Workmen will also install nesting boxes for the five different species of bat living under the bridge.
Barton Bridge is classified as a Grade II listed building and is linked with nearby Barton Grange Farm, which was once farmed by monks from Shaftesbury Abbey.
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