RECONSTRUCTED IN its original style, the footbridge that spans a dramatic sea gorge at Mizen Head in west Cork has been officially reopened.
Cork county engineer Noel O’Keeffe said the bridge was a near-replica of the original Victorian steel structure which was completed in 1909.
“It is slightly wider than the original bridge but it is the same span – about 50m from the mainland to the island. There are spectacular views from both the mainland and the island itself. And that would all have been lost [without the project].”
The new €1.8 million bridge linking Mizen Head lighthouse to the mainland has been open to visitors since St Patrick’s Day, but it was opened officially yesterday by Minister for Transport Leo Varadkar. In its last six months of operation in 2009, the old footbridge carried 15,000 visitors over to the lighthouse.
There has already been an encouraging footfall on the new bridge, which has had more than 26,000 visitors since March. Mr O’Keeffe estimated that the figure would almost double to 50,000 by the end of the year.
He added that the bridge was a unique piece of engineering.
“The original bridge was built by a series of towers and wire ropes,” he said. “The new bridge was fascinating in the sense that the contractor, Carillion Irishenco, and the consultant, RPS, came up with the novel concept of building a bridge to build a bridge. By that I mean the old bridge was in such a state that we put a steel beam across the mainland to the island to support the old bridge.”
Before demolition or construction works began, a bespoke steel truss was erected by hand and an intricate scaffolding system was installed.
A temporary platform was constructed to give construction personnel safe access to carry out demolition and construction work.
Kieran Ruane, project manager with RPS engineers, said the successful completion of the project had preserved a landmark structure on the coast of Ireland.
The project has been shortlisted for a British Institution of Structural Engineers heritage award.
Fáilte Ireland, the Commissioners of Irish Lights and Cork County Council jointly funded the contract to rebuild the structure.
Throughout the 100-year life of the old bridge, it had been subject to extreme weather and environmental conditions. These conditions slowly took their toll and caused the structure to deteriorate.
In 2005 a temporary footway was installed. The lifespan of the temporary footway came to an end in 2009 just in time for the contract signing for the construction of the new structure.
The Mizen Head Signal Station Visitor Centre, which has been open to the public since 1994, is a key tourist attraction in west Cork.
CROSSING THE DIVIDE BRIDGE FACTS AND FIGURES:THE NEW bridge was designed as a two-pinned arch and is constructed in reinforced concrete using stainless steel reinforcement. Construction work commenced on site in October 2009 and was completed in December 2010. It is a replica of the original footbridge built in 1909, but the deck is 700mm wider.
The purpose of the original bridge was to provide access to the fog signal station at Mizen Head. In recent years, the bridge has become a tourist attraction.
50 metres- The span. It is 45m above the crashing waves of the Atlantic Ocean
€1.8m -The cost of the new bridge
1 metre- Access to the bridge site was via a steeply inclined footway, less than one metre wide