City of Greater Geraldton awards tender to replace Walkaway-Nangetty Road Bridge to Fortec

The City of Greater Geraldton has awarded the tender to replace the Walkaway-Nangetty Road Bridge to Perth engineering firm Fortec. The $9 million project is closer to fruition after the tender was awarded. The city has been working closely with Federal and State governments to design and fund the new bridge to ensure it meets the current needs of the transport industry. “Since the bridge was constructed in 1964 the transport industry has changed with the use of road trains up to 36.5metres long RAV7 (restricted access vehicles) on regional roads now commonplace,” mayor Jerry Clune said. “(The bridge) is an important link to the commercial and industrial areas of the City and Port via the Geraldton-Mount Magnet Road.” “This route services many freight operations including the grain-harvest, lime-sand and sand mining industries.” The Federal Government provided $4.539m towards the project under the new Safer Local Roads and Infrastructure Program, formerly the Bridges Renewal Program. The State Government allocated $1m to help replace the bridge. Construction of the bridge replacement by Fortec, a specialised engineering and bridge construction company with substantial experience delivering projects for the public sector, will begin in early 2025. Following regular infrastructure audits undertaken in early 2021, concerns were raised about the aged bridge’s capacity to carry heavy haulage vehicles up to RAV7. To ensure this critical freight route could remain open to the transport industry, in July 2021, the speed limit on the bridge was reduced to 60km/h. More information on the project is available on the city’s website.