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Nostalgia: Bridging the gap in Broadbottom

The swinging in of the footbridge at Besthill Bridge. This 1960 picture appeared with a Chronicle story that claimed the road bridge could still be dangerous and needed to be made wider.

Besthill Bridge which links Charlesworth and Broadbottom has been in the news for as long as buses, cars, vans and trucks have driven over it. 

Back in 1935, one local councillor was complaining that it was 'a menace to the safety of vehicular and pedestrian traffic' and that Derbyshire and Cheshire county councils, who had joint responsibility for the bridge, should do something about it. 

Villagers and drivers said it was too narrow and that a new bridge over the River Etherow should be built. The cost, however, proved prohibitive. 


A TIGHT SQUEEZE: A single deck bus inches over the bridge in this photograph from 1938

A footbridge for pedestrians was added, traffic lights at either side of the bridge were installed. 

However, scratches in the stonework still suggests that some drivers still find it a tight squeeze. 

Improvements and repairs have taken place and are currently ongoing. But when it comes to creating something that suits everyone, is Besthill 'a bridge too far'? 

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