The Congham Bridge will remain filled with concrete following the investigation

A historic railway bridge will remain encased in concrete after building inspectors quashed an appeal to remove the concrete.

West Norfolk Council has taken action against National Highways after it poured 1,000 tonnes of concrete under Congham Bridge in 2021 to make the bridge safe.

Last October, councilors rejected an attempt by National Highways to apply for retrospective permission to make the work permanent.

National Highways appealed to the government’s planning inspectorate, which found him right at a public inquiry the council said was “disappointing”.

Inspector Laura Renaudon, who was handling the appeal, concluded that retrospective planning permission would now be granted for the work, noting it was an “unfortunate sequence of events”.

In the report, she said: “The damage to the value of the heritage property is regrettable but must be balanced against the overall low significance of the property, the fact that the bridge is preserved, although filled in, and other factors in the case. “

She said the backfilling of the bridge allowed traffic – including farm vehicles – to pass over it and also reduced “local hotbeds of anti-social behaviour”.

She added: “Accordingly, I find that the development is in accordance with the development plan of the area.”

About 3,000 statements and evidence were presented before the public inquiry and experts on both sides appeared before the inspector.

Reacting to Wednesday’s decision, a council spokesman said: “This is very disappointing news and we know that opponents and campaigners will feel the same way.

“We believed we made a strong case but we accept the inspector’s decision on this matter.”

Over the past two decades, the Congham Bridge, which was built in 1926, has corroded and developed fractures.

However, it later breached permitted development regulations when it failed to remove the concrete within 12 months.

Activists argued that the concrete should be removed and the bridge maintained.

Graeme Bickerdike, a member of The HRE Group, a group of engineers, heritage campaigners and greenway developers, said he was disappointed by the planning inspectorate’s decision.

“This was an unnecessary and destructive scheme which resulted in the loss of a significant heritage site of regional importance,” he said.

“As we move towards more sustainable forms of transport, legacy railway structures have the potential to play an increasingly important role and their value must be recognized by those responsible for their management.

“Losing this – simply due to downsizing – was short-sighted and indicative of cultural issues.”

Congham Bridge is one of only six that were built in the 1920s by William Marriott, engineer of the Midland and Great Northern Railway.

The railway line once linked South Lynn with Fakenham before continuing to Great Yarmouth.

The line closed in 1959, predating Beeching’s cuts in the following decade, which led to the closure of large sections of the rail network.

However, the bridge remained in service, carrying a quiet country road, St Andrews Lane, over the now abandoned line.

It is one of 51 bridges that have been filled in since 2013 at a cost of £8 million, according to the Heritage Railway Estates Group.

Engineers recently completed digging out hundreds of tonnes of concrete from Great Musgrave Bridge in Cumbria after Eden District Council ordered the Victorian structure to be restored last year.

National Highways has been approached for comment.