‘WE’LL believe it when we see it.’

This is the reaction to the re-opening of Poole Bridge following news of yet another delay to the contract.

As reported in the Daily Echo yesterday, the 90-year-old bridge is not expected to be back in action until Friday, December 15, because essential parts, including timber walkways, have yet to be delivered from a factory in the Czech Republic.

It is the fifth delay to the crossing’s re-opening since the project began in September 2016.

The cost of the £4.7m renovation is set to rise, although Poole council said it had not yet negotiated the cost of the delayed work with contractors Interserve.

Poole Town councillor Andy Hadley said the bridge’s closure had caused issues for residents and criticised the recent delay.

“I went along on the open day recently and talked to (engineering manager) John Rice at some length about it. It’s been a really complicated project, and it’s frustrating there have been delays,” he said.

“I have sympathy with him and the contractor, however the problem surrounding parts, in particular the timber walkways, should have been predicted and shouldn’t have been such a major issue.

“Also, it’s quite sad they’re buying in stuff from the Czech Republic when the Poole Bridge site is near a timber yard.

"The closure of the bridge has caused issues – queuing has been endemic, although people are resigned to that now.

"People told me they didn’t think it was going to be re-opened by the end of November.” He added: “We really are at the last stages now. I wouldn’t expect it to be deferred again as the last stage is in process."

Scores of Echo readers reacted to the news of the latest delay on social media. One commenter joked: “The Empire State building was built quicker in the 1930s.”

Others were not surprised that the bridge’s re-opening had been pushed back again.

Ann Smeaton, chair of Hamside Residents Association, said Hamworthy residents were “resigned” to its closure by now.

“People in Hamworthy are so resilient. We want it opened, but we want it to be a proper job,” she said.

“The closure has caused lots of inconvenience, particularly at night when people don’t want to walk round the Twin Sails bridge.”

She added: “Although we’re coping, it would be nice to be given a definite date we can believe. We didn’t believe it would be open on November 24. We’ll believe it when we see it.”

Contractors Interserve have still yet to comment on the matter despite repeated requests from the Daily Echo.

When it announced the fourth re-opening delay in September, the council said progress had been impeded by a number of issues, including abandoned and live utility cables on site, the remains of previous bridges and a significant section of buried quay wall. Also, additional steelwork repairs only became apparent as the approach spans were removed, resulting in this part of the scheme taking much longer than anticipated. The delays also involved problems with getting in the anchors, which hold back the abutments under each side of the structure.