Irish Water works to close major Cork city bridge to traffic over weekend

St Patrick's Bridge in Cork city will be closed to vehicular traffic this weekend due to Irish Water works.

The bridge will remain open to pedestrians for the duration of the closure, which will last from 7.30pm on Friday evening until 6am on Monday morning.

Cars and buses will be re-routed along the city quays to minimise the impact.

The closure is a result of the ongoing works on the eastern strategic link water main. Works to tackle the leakage and provide a more secure supply in the city are already underway at St Patrick's Quay and Camden Quay.

Irish Water is laying a section of a new 3.8km pipeline from Tivoli docks to Camden Quay. Once finished, the project will ensure a more secure water supply by giving the capacity to re-route supply from other areas in the event of a large burst or other unplanned incidents.

Phase 1 of the project will be completed by the end of August. To facilitate this element of the works, one lane between St Patricks Quay and Camden Quay, crossing the junction of St Patricks Bridge and Bridge Street, will close.

Due to this requirement, St Patrick's Bridge will be closed to vehicular traffic but pedestrian access and crossings to Bridge Street will be maintained.

As the works can be completed within one lane closure, traffic flow is to be maintained along the quays in the direction of Camden Quay. Signage and local diversions will be in place.

In addition, works to renew aged water mains in Turners Cross, the Victorian Quarter, and Skehard road are continuing.

“Water network improvement works are progressing well in many locations across Cork City. We would like to thank local residents and businesses for their ongoing cooperation as we work together to deliver these improvements to Cork’s water supply,” said Steven Blennerhassett, Leakage Reduction Programme, Irish Water.