Bridge to fully reopen after near two-year wait

A road bridge that has been partially closed for nearly two years is expected to reopen in a week's time.

The £32m King's Dyke bridge between Peterborough and Whittlesey was opened in 2022 to ease traffic caused by a railway level crossing.

It was partially closed in June 2024 after cracks were spotted in the westbound carriageway, causing disruption to residents and businesses.

Cambridgeshire County Council said the road will be fully reopened by 28 February "as planned" as the necessary remedial work comes close to completion.

The bridge is on Ralph Butcher Causeway, which was named in honour of a former Fenland district councillor who campaigned for it to be built in the 1970s.

But spiralling costs, a revised scheme and a change of contractor meant work did not start until July 2020, and after a 50-year wait it finally opened in July 2022.

It was described as a "triumph" by the mayor at that time and was expected to cut road delays caused by the level crossing at King's Dyke, where the gates were closing up to 200 times a day and motorists had to wait between 12 and 23 minutes to cross.

The bridge spans the Peterborough-Ely railway line.

"Work continues on the final layer of sprayed concrete, focused on the top of the embankment to allow traffic management to be removed as planned on 28 February," a council spokesperson said.

"Once the road is reopened, [contractors] Jones Bros will continue working lower down the embankment to complete the remaining remedial work."

A period of settlement will follow before the road is fully resurfaced later this year.

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