Council admits that flyover was not checked weekly

Gateshead Council have admitted that the flyover that has recently been closed due to safety concerns was not checked every week, despite their assurances that it had been.

The A167 Gateshead Highway was closed on the 13^th of December after an inspector flagged some serious concerns about one of the supporting pillars. Gateshead Council leader Martin Gannon had previously reassured both BBC Radio Newcastle and the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) that the flyover underwent inspections “every week” due to the structure’s age. However this appears not to be the case, as the council admitted that these assessments were “not necessarily” this frequent but that the flyover had “regular” checks throughout the year.

This closure forced Metro to suspend their usual services running beneath the 1960s-built structure for almost two weeks, as well as causing further congestion on nearby roads, delaying drivers on the Tyne Bridge.

A Gateshead Council report from 2019 predicted that the flyover could have a remaining service time of up to 71 years – while making it clear that it would require £94 million in repairs over this time period in order for the flyover to remain operational. This has sparked calls for clear information on what has happened to the flyover in the intervening years to cause such an abrupt shutdown of the structure, only five years after this report was composed.  

A requested Freedom of Information inquiry revealed that the flyover had been subject to government mandated inspections in 2004, 2017, 2018, 2020, 2022 and 2024. These additional inspections took place “every week” according to Gannon, but the council have declined to confirm how often these additional assessments had actually occurred.

When questioned why there had been repeated confirmations of weekly inspections, the council stated that Gannon was speaking after a verbal staff briefing and had been referencing multiple assessments that had been carried out over the past year.

Gannon has said that drivers can expect disruption for the foreseeable future as the demolition work is predicted to take about a year, stating that it was a “really complex, difficult piece of work”.