News

Watt Rd bridge height barrier damaged

By Georgia Rossiter

Jan 31, 2022

Damaged: A height barrier on Watt Rd Bridge was hit by a truck on Monday morning.

Drivers were unable to cross the Watt Rd bridge at Mooroopna for a period of time on Monday, January 31, after a truck damaged one of the newly-installed height barriers.

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The truck driver crossed the bridge about 11.20am and the truck hit the height barrier on the Mooroopna side of the Goulburn River.

Traffic was blocked from crossing the one-lane bridge until Greater Shepparton City Council workers arrived to remove the damaged barrier.

A council spokesperson said neither of the incidents caused structural damage to the bridge.

The damaged barrier would be fixed or replaced, the spokesperson said.

Mooroopna police First Constable Clint Thomas, who responded to the incident, said the truck received minimal damage.

He said the truck driver involved in the accident was not from the area and was unaware of the height restrictions on the bridge.

Safety upgrades: New guard rails and height barriers were installed to make the Watt Rd bridge safer.

The barrier was installed as part of the most recent upgrade in order to improve the safety of the bridge.

New guard-rail barrier posts, decking boards and steel girder cross-bracings were installed and damaged cross-beams and timber kerbs were replaced as part of the works.

The $1 million project took four months to complete, with the bridge opening again to traffic from December 12 last year.