What discussions has the Welsh Government had with UK Highways and other organisations on the safety of the Menai Bridge prior to its closure in October?
In May 2022, we were advised by UK Highways A55 Ltd that its structural consultants had concerns about the materials used in some of the hangers supporting the A5 Menai Suspension Bridge deck and on its advice, pending further analysis, a 7.5 tonne weight limit was imposed.
Prior to this no concerns had been raised or specific discussions taken place regarding the hangers at the regular Welsh Government, department representative and UK Highways A55 Ltd meetings.
In October 2022, we were advised by UK Highways A55 Ltd and its structural consultants that the further analysis had shown there were significant concerns with certain dynamic loading conditions, which could lead to a catastrophic failure of the bridge deck.
A Local Resilience Forum was convened as part of the civil contingencies process to inform key partners and organisations of the updated advice after which we took the decision to close the bridge in the interest of public safety.