Tharwa Bridge Restoration

The Tharwa Bridge was reopened for public use on Friday 24 June 2011 following the completion of restoration works.

Restoration works took two years and involved removal of the old bridge deck and barrier railings as well as installation of new cross girders and sway braces to the permanent trusses.

In May 2011, the new 108 metre long and 100 tonne timber deck was installed and has now been tied into the rest of the bridge structure.

A total of $26 million was allocated to the project with $14.7 million provided by the ACT Government and $11.3 million provided by the Federal Government through the Roads to Recovery program. The work was undertaken by the NSW Roads and Traffic Authority who are highly experienced in the conservation and maintenance of old timber bridges.

Like many timber bridges, was an ongoing history of maintenance issues for the Tharwa Bridge and in 2005 it was closed due to safety concerns for vehicular traffic and pedestrians.

The decision to restore the existing bridge to its original form as opposed to building a new concrete bridge followed an extensive community consultation process carried out in 2008. A conservation management plan was developed to guide the conservation and restoration of the bridge to ensure it remained consistent with the original design. This plan was endorsed by the ACT Heritage Council.

Tharwa Bride was first built in 1895 and is the oldest standing bridge in the ACT. Tharwa Bridge holds significant heritage value for the local Canberra region. In 1983 it was entered on the Register of the National Estate by the Australian Heritage Commission and in 1998 it was entered on the ACT Heritage Register.

More Information

Final Report - Tharwa Bridge Consultation 8 January 2008 ( PDF 350Kb)

Photo taken by James Neill - Licence terms