Byron Shire Council, New South Wales, last month completed the timber restoration of Brunswick Heads’ iconic South Arm Bridge, which was officially opened by the Assistant Minister to the Deputy Prime Minister, the Honourable Kevin Hogan.
The bridge’s restoration was funded under the Australian Government’s Bridges Renewal ($607,530) and Roads to Recovery ($456,000) programs, with Byron Shire Council also contributing $593,000.
Byron Shire Mayor, Simon Richardson, said, “We are proud of this project on so many levels.
“The restoration of this bridge was essentially an entire rebuild from the ground up with intense traffic conditions at times which presented enormous challenges.
“Not only have we delivered a re-engineered and structurally superior bridge with a much higher load rating for Brunswick Heads and its visitors, the timber features are absolutely beautiful.
“On top of this, what a great recycling story this project has been!”
Thanks to some innovative thinking by Council’s engineers, seasoned hardwood timbers recycled from bridge replacements in Bangalow were used in this upgrade, while new homes for the old South Arm Bridge timbers were found for other Council and community projects around the Shire.
The project also produced a range of environmental benefits because it was a timber reconstruction rather than a new concrete bridge. It is estimated that this design choice produced savings in the order of around 800 tonnes of CO2.
In addition, the impact on the marine park environment of Simpson’s Creek was very low compared to driving new piles and pouring concrete over the waterway for a new concrete bridge.
The new timber used for the bridge’s decking was sourced from Australian Sustainable managed forestry.
Mayor Richardson thanked the Australian Government for their continued support to improve the region’s local infrastructure.
“We hope this iconic bridge will continue to be a much-loved asset for decades to come.”
