Weak edge beams will prompt more traffic misery for Fourdon residents when a collapsed wall is rebuilt.
Drivers have been forced to find alternative routes since the 170-year-old Abbeyton crossing was dismantled at Christmas after serious structural failings were deemed to pose a risk to the railway line below.
The Fourdon Station Railway Bridge was completely closed in November after inspections revealed further damage to an embankment following the demolition of a nearby house.
The road leading to the bridge was damaged by the removal of a retaining wall at an adjoining private property.
The collapsed wall led to subsidence of the carriageway and subsequent closure of the road over the railway bridge.
The identification of weak edge beams on the bridge, owned by Network Rail, means when the wall is rebuilt the road width will need to be reduced to a single lane to protect the bridge.
Vehicle movements will be controlled by traffic lights and residents will be given an update next week at Fordoun Memorial Hall.
A public drop-in event on Monday from 3 to 7pm will discuss the situation relating to local roads affected by closures including potential solutions and the search for funding.
Aberdeenshire Council’s Bridges Manager, Donald MacPherson, said: “Prioritisation of bridge replacements is an ongoing process and there are a range of bridges throughout Aberdeenshire which require attention, each competing for available resources.
“This meeting is a chance to share our work to date with the local community and show what the roads network will look like in different scenarios.
“We expect to spend around £150,000 providing a solution to reopen the road at Fordoun Station Railway Bridge.”
Residents of Fordoun and Auchenblae are growing increasingly frustrated with drivers already forced to take a four-mile detour to get in and out of the village.
A host of Aberdeenshire bridges are in dire need of repair, or radical overhaul in the case of some built as far back as the 18th Century.
The authority has been racked with such problems across the region, with many of its bridges dating back hundreds of years and not designed to cope with the increasing levels of modern traffic.
Figures from the RAC Foundation revealed 65 of the 1,800 bridges on the council’s roads are sub-standard – more than in any other Scottish region.
