Network Rail has reached a major milestone on its South Wales Mainline electrification project.

The main deck of the existing Bridge Street Road Bridge in Newport was successfully removed by a 600-tonne crawler crane in the early hours of Sunday, 10 July.

Engineers worked to reduce the weight of the structure from 600 tonnes to around 235 tonnes so that the bridge deck could be lifted out in one operation.

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The bridge lift is a "critical milestone" in the project to replace the ageing structure as part of Network Rail's £40 billion Railway Upgrade Plan.

The new bridge deck will now be installed in September and the road bridge is scheduled to reopen in December.

Karl Gilmore, programme manager for Network Rail said: "Electrifying the railway will provide the growing number of train passengers with faster, greener, quieter, more reliable services and will help to stimulate economic growth by better connecting towns and cities in South Wales and beyond."

(LM/MH)