Closure of Kourkoumeli bridge continues to cause inconvenience

Residents and many passing drivers have reached the limits of their patience due to the closure of the Kourkoumeli Bridge in Afra by the Ionian Islands Regional Authority for safety reasons.

For approximately two and a half months, locals have experienced incredible inconvenience as their movement is now limited to provincial roads that are not suitable for all types of vehicles, using much more time on the road to reach their destination.

In particular, trips to the hospital have become a "headache" with protests growing daily about the work that has not yet begun, so that the bridge can be accessible again to vehicles.

The bridge is in a crucial location as it connects the western side of central Corfu with the eastern part of the island and mainly with the hospital, and about 15,000 vehicles of all types use it daily. The restoration of the bridge is the responsibility of the Ionian Islands Regional Administration.

Deputy Regional Governor for Infrastructure and Technical Works, Manolis Orfanoudakis, told Enimerosi that the final approval of the temporary measures for the stabilisation of the bridge is expected from the Directorate of Restoration of Modern Monuments, so that the contractor for the first phase can start work.

Inspection

In early April, the Director of Restoration of Modern Monuments conducted an inspection of the bridge, and, following the observations they made, the Regional Technical Services Department is awaiting the green light for the approval of the temporary measures.

"We submitted the study for the temporary restoration and stabilisation of the bridge over a year ago," said Mr. Orfanoudakis. "A month ago, the Director of Restoration of Modern Monuments conducted an inspection of the bridge, requested some technical corrections, and we are now waiting for the final approval of the study to begin the temporary stabilisation works, so that the bridge can be reopened to traffic." He clarified that it will only be accessible to cars and not heavy vehicles.

He also mentioned that even though the Regional Technical Services lowered the weight capacity of the bridge from 15 to 3 tons recently to reduce the danger, heavy vehicles such as tri-axle trucks, buses, and school buses continued to use it.

During an inspection by the Technical Works Department the infrastructure on the whole of Corfu following the "Ballos" storm, damage was detected. Because the macroscopic inspection could not fully predict the behaviour of the bridge structure due to wear caused by unforeseeable situations (such as extreme weather conditions), it was deemed necessary to close the bridge as a precaution for the safety of passing drivers.