Council Calls for Cleaner Rail Bridges in Lincoln
The City of Lincoln council is urging street cleaning teams to step up their efforts in keeping the city’s rail bridges clean and tidy. These calls come following reports of faecal matter and urine pooling in the areas of Brayford Wharf East and High Street rail bridges – both heavily frequented pedestrian spots.
The High Street bridge has previously been used as an unofficial public toilet, with complaints and public concerns leading to a deep clean of the multi-million pound Brayford Wharf East structure in June 2023. Apart from dealing with human waste, teams also had to clear blocked drains filled with mud, remove broken glass, clean moss off the stairs, and deal with graffiti and stray stickers.
City Council Police Discuss Clean-up Action
On October 3, the City of Lincoln Council Police held a discussion about taking action to deal with the cleanliness of the bridges. An analysis of the council’s Waste Collection and Street Cleansing Contract was reviewed during the meeting. This contract is expected to commence in September 2026 and will cover routine and monthly ‘deep-clean’ services. The report highlighted that incorporating such services carries an expense but it is not significant compared to other budgetary allotments.
"Shouldn’t that be the responsibility of Network Rail? They own the bridges, the crossings; shouldn’t they pay for this rather than the taxpayer?" questioned Conservative councillor Mark Storer.
Despite Storer's concern, Steve Bird, the City of Lincoln Council’s assistant director for Communities and Street Scene, pointed out that Network Rail’s response times are notoriously slow and their cleaning standards clearly fall short. Hence, Bird suggests that it’s better for the council to take proactive measures even if it means absorbing the additional costs into existing budgets.
"Given it’s such a small part of the contract, given the amount of work that needs to be done, it makes sense to be flexible," stated Bird.
Network Rail Objects
After the meeting, Councillor Storer insisted that Network Rail ought to finance the cleaning and maintenance of the bridges they own. If not, they should compensate the council if it decides to conduct the maintenance. In response, a Network Rail spokesperson said they have addressed the cleanliness issues of the two bridges with new cleaning regimes and continue to respond to complaints as quickly as they can.