Bridge demolition finally begins

The work has cut away structurally vital parts of the bridge

Demolition work has begun on the main structure of a Leicester bridge which is at the centre of a conservation row.

Bowstring Bridge in the city's West End formerly carried London-bound trains but has been derelict for decades.

Plans to remove it and a nearby pub to make way for a leisure centre prompted campaigners to try to get it listed as historically significant.

But this failed and following a lone protest, workmen have started to dismantle the metal structure.

Expensive repairs

On Monday a woman chained herself to the bridge in an effort to gain more time to halt the work but came down after 12 hours.

Efforts to secure legal protection for the structure failed after English Heritage advised the government it was not of sufficient architectural or historical interest.

But campaigner Stuart Simmonds disagreed, saying: "I would love to know how interesting a bridge has to be before they do consider it interesting enough.

"English Heritage are the organisation which recently listed one of the old-style red phone boxes and there are plenty of them in the country - this bridge is much more unique than that."

The city council insisted the bridge would be too expensive to restore and the new leisure centre would be a valuable resource for the city.

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A Victorian bridge at the centre of a conservation dispute has begun to be dismantled