THE main road beneath the crumbling Darcy Lever railway viaduct is set to re-open this weekend.

But local people who have campaigned for years for the disused structure to be pulled down now fear they could be stuck with it well into the millennium.

British Rail engineers working on the bridge said it should be safe enough for traffic to drive through - and could be OK for another 20 years.

As reported in the BEN, Radcliffe Road was shut last Wednesday as an emergency repair plan swung into action on the disused viaduct.

Worried residents alerted engineers when lumps of masonry rained down more than 100 feet - just yards from houses and only a short distance from St Stephen & All Martyrs CE primary school.

Now British Rail Property Board officials have rigged a safety net underneath the viaduct to catch any more loose debris.

A spokesman said: "The net is in place and further repair work should get us to a position where it is safe to re-open the road below by the weekend."

Initially it was thought the road could be closed for up to a month.

Despite the crumbling concrete, engineers are confident the viaduct structure itself is safe.

The spokesman added: "Providing there are no unforeseen problems the work being done now should stabilise the situation for up to 20 years.

"Once this work is complete detailed discussions will take place about the future of the viaduct."

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