Repairs to a swing bridge have been completed.

The Canal and River Trust has finished a five-month programme of works to refurbish Royal Oak Swing Bridge.

With the repairs requiring a road closure, the bridge which carries Woodhouse End Road over the Macclesfield Canal in Oakgrove reopened on Friday (April 25).

Project manager Lisa Shaw said: "We've been able to successfully carry out a complete upgrade and repairs to fully refurbish the bridge and futureproof it for many years to come.

"We are grateful to the local people, boaters, drivers, cyclists and pedestrians for their patience during the disruption while the works were taking place, which took longer than originally planned.

"However, our extensive work to upgrade the structure has given us the chance to reopen a stronger, safer and more resilient bridge."

The bridge being reinstalled (Credit: CRT)

The increased weight in vehicles over the years had taken its toll on the condition of the bridge, which is one of 13 originally built across the canal, mostly for farmers to access their fields, and is the only one to carry a public highway.

A 300-tonne crane was used to remove, refurbish and re-install the bridge.

The repairs included an upgrade of the electrical instrumentation, software and hydraulics, which control and drive the bridge to open and close, as well as the bridge bearing and support structure.

 Lisa added: "The bridge was lifted out and sent away to be stripped down to bare metal, a structural survey was undertaken, which identified remedial works were needed to be carried out on the structure. We replaced the timber deck and bearer beam, bearing plates and several mechanical and electrical components. The bridge has also been treated, repainted and returned to site as a completely refurbished unit.

"A new control pedestal has been installed and relocated to the towpath end of the bridge, to improve the view of the waterway for boaters. The traffic management systems on the eastern and western approaches have also been updated and include barriers and flashing warning lights and a siren to help improve road traffic control."

The bridge reopened last Friday, April 25 (Credit: CRT)