Telford’s favourite bridge has been shortlisted Award

The footbridge, named Silver Swallow, links Telford Central railway station and Telford town centre and spans two dual carriageways and the main Shrewsbury to Wolverhampton railway line.

It has been shortlisted in the Award for Infrastructure Planning category of the awards which are run by Planning magazine in conjunction with Planning Resource and Placemaking Resource

The winner of the award will be announced online on Wednesday 9 September.

Councillor David Wright, Telford & Wrekin Council’s cabinet member for the Economy, Housing, Transport and Infrastructure, said: “I am absolutely delighted that our new footbridge has been shortlisted for this prestigious award.

“It was a high profile scheme that created an iconic infrastructure feature at a key entry point into Telford Town Centre and it also represented a model of multi-agency partnership working.

“This included a positive collaboration between apT, the council’s development consultancy, engineers and transport operators to deliver a distinctive, high quality and visually impressive development.”

The footbridge replaced an existing structure which had reached the end of its life, suffered from widespread corrosion and had become a maintenance liability.

The new bridge has a 120 year design life and has been designed to integrate into the surrounding landscape with the inclusion of a comprehensive landscaping scheme including generous replacement tree planting.

The scheme has seen the implementation of new cycle parking at the station to increase the attractiveness to travel by rail and encourage walking or cycling to Telford Central Station.