The historic rail footbridge in Ashburton is closed following a single vehicle crash on Tuesday.
Police were notified at around 3.40pm of a single vehicle crash at the foot bridge, near the intersection of West St and Wills St.
The vehicle was wedged under the ramp on the West St side of the bridge.
Hato Hone St John had two ambulances respond.
A spokesperson said: ‘‘One patient, in moderate condition, was transported to Ashburton Hospital. One additional patient, in minor condition, was assessed and treated at the scene (no transport required).’’
Kiwi Rail said train movements were delayed for 30 minutes.
The Ashburton District Council has closed the footbridge until further notice, pending inspection.
Council infrastructure and open spaces group manager Neil McCann told Local Democracy Reporting a structural assessment was undertaken yesterday and the report will be available by the end of the week.
He confirmed there was no danger of it falling down.
McCann said the historic footbridge, like all the roads and roading infrastructure, like bridges and signs, was not insured. This was “common practice at all councils”.
Any repair work will likely be included in the overall restoration project, but the incident would not bring the work forward McCann said.
“Council plans to have the contract awarded before Christmas, with work starting early 2026.”
The restoration work is from three different structures budgets and has an estimated cost is $705,000 he said.
“We will not know the actual cost until it is tendered. The removal of the truss off-site to do the work will depend on the contractor’s methodology.”
The council adopted a conservation management plan for the footbridge in 2023, committing to the maintenance and renewal of the historic structure when funds were available.
Those funds were budgeted in the latest long-term plan for 2025/26 and included in the annual plan adopted in May.
At the other end of Ashburton, another piece of historic railway infrastructure is getting repairs after being crashed into.
The Tinwald viaduct is closed to vehicles until KiwiRail can repair an overhead beam that was damaged by an excavator being towed on a trailer a week ago.
The excavator exceeded the 2.39m clearance, hitting the bridge.
The bridge remains safe for trains to use, but the road below it (Melcombe Street) will be closed as a precautionary measure until repairs to the impact beam are made.
History of the footbridge
The Railway Footbridge was constructed in 1917 and is the key surviving feature from the Ashburton Railway Station complex following the demolition of the main station building in 2013.
The footbridge, with its bowstring truss, is the only remaining bridge in New Zealand of its type in its original location and used for the original purpose.
Initially, the east end of the bridge had ramps descending at right angles both towards the town centre and to the station building, but the northeast ramp was removed in 1983.
The Ashburton Railway Station, opened in 1917, remained a busy thoroughfare until the 1980s, when the number of passenger trains was steadily reduced.
In 2002, the passenger train service stopped altogether, and the station building was demolished in 2013.
The footbridge was gifted to the council around 2010.
~ Additional reporting Jonathan Leask, Local democracy reporting. LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.
