Work to dismantle Belfast’s Boyne Bridge has resumed after it was halted last week over a planning issue.
The demolition of the bridge at Durham Street, close to the city centre and linking to the Sandy Row area, got underway in November, two months after the opening of Belfast’s new £340m Grand Central Station.
Rebuilt in 1930, the bridge dates back to 1860, and is being removed to create a new public square that Translink say will enable better access to the transport hub.
The demolition was halted as a result of the Department for Infrastructure (DfI) launching an investigation into alleged non-compliance with planning conditions that required a viable traffic plan to be in place before the work could start.
The closure of Durham Street for an estimated 12 months has been blamed for contributing to traffic problems in the city.
However, work resumed at the bridge site on Thursday, and the DfI said planning conditions “have all been discharged”.
Opposition to the demolition of Boyne Bridge is maintained by a local residents group in the Sandy Row area and the Ulster Architectural Heritage Society (UAHS).
Both want the bridge to be retained for its historical value, while the Blackstaff Residents Association has said the closure of Durham Street has impacted traders in the area.
The group has written to DfI Chief Planner Alistair Beggs to outline concerns and to call for the bridge to remain as an underpass for pedestrians to access Grand Central Station.
In a follow-up letter on Thursday, group spokesperson Billy Dickson said: “It is our understanding that the validity of the decision can be challenged by a Judicial Review. If this is the case then Translink should be informed immediately that no work should commence as there might be a Judicial Review.”
Mr Dickson has said a lack of traffic planning and the closure of Durham Street has led to a “horrendous outcome” for local businesses.
In a short statement to the Irish News, a DfI spokesperson said: “The planning conditions have all been discharged. Translink have been notified and the Planning portal is in the process of being updated.”
A Translink spokesperson said: “The current phase of work, including the dismantling of the Boyne Bridge, is progressing in line with the relevant planning conditions.”
The new public realm space that will replace the bridge is to be called Saltwater Square, and is part of the wider development of the Weavers Cross area.
Belfast City Council has agreed to rename a section of Durham Street ‘Boyne Bridge Place’ once the new public space is built, while Translink has said it will incorporate parts of the bridge structure in the square, including its iron lampposts that were cast in the old Millfield Foundry.
