British bridge in iconic city given horrific nickname by outraged locals
The Chanterlands Avenue bridge is one of several the residents of Hull are unhappy about as the city tries to tackle the problem.
A British bridge in an iconic city has been given a horrific nickname by locals outraged at its current poor state.
The bridge on Chanterlands Avenue, Hull, has been nicknamed the 'Guano Bridge' because of how much pigeon poo is on the structure and how many people get showered by it when they walk near it.
Last year, in reaction to how poor a state the bridge was in, locals erected a sign with the nickname emblazoned on the side.
Speaking to HullLive, residents have compared the situation to a “horror film” and described it as “disgusting”.
Councillor John Robinson has called on Network Rail, who look after the bridge, to do more to tackle problems with the Chanterlands Avenue bridge and similar structures across the city.
The BBC reported that Mr Robinson tabled a motion at a council meeting last week which sought to find a solution to the worsening crisis in Hull.
Mr Robinson exclaimed: “Residents in the city avoid walking under some bridges due to poor lighting and the bird mess on the pavement.
“People are fed up of looking at graffiti on bridges and where this council wants to get tough on the issue, it's being let down by Network Rail. Residents in my area have a number of bridges around the Chanterlands Avenue and Newland Avenue area [and] these all need regular maintenance.”
Mr Robinson said Network Rail had to properly maintain the bridges so that “council taxpayers aren’t wasting money cleaning up problems”.
In a statement following Mr Robinson’s comments, a spokesperson for Network Rail said: “Our priority is always to ensure that our structures are safe for the trains and people that use them, and any issues that may affect this are quickly resolved.
“We look forward to speaking with the council to address these concerns together."
Hull isn’t the only city in the UK facing a crisis over its bridges. In London, a crisis is intensifying over when one of its most famous bridges will finally reopen to traffic.
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Hammersmith Bridge has been closed for nearly five years and the bill to repair and strengthen the 137-year-old structure has risen to nearly £250million.
Speaking to the Evening Standard, Liberal Democrat MP Sarah Olney said it was “increasingly possible” the bridge wouldn’t reopen to traffic.
Before it closed in 2019, the bridge served nearly 20,000 vehicles and seven bus routes. Those vehicles have had to travel over Chiswick and Putney bridges in the five years since.
Ms Olney said people may not be able to drive over Hammersmith Bridge for another 10 years.