Ayrshire - Largs volunteers thank public after bridge restoration

The Viking Garden volunteers at the town's railway station have long been unhappy about the state of the side panel of the bridge over the Gogo Burn, next door to the station, which was in decrepit and dilapidated condition.

The seawards side of the bridge was given a fresh paint and makeover a few years ago - but the opposite side has been left to rack and ruin.

State of old bridge before transformation (Image: Newsquest)

Locals, led by Anne Carson, raised £500 for the project which included a full re-painting, and even one of the cracked roundels being repaired, and it now looks spick and span and ready for another 150 years.

Anne's helpers included Jim Morrice, Campbell and Moira Paterson, Marie Jay, Irene and Frank McKinney, and Jamie Gould.

Anne said: "We painted it and sanded it down ourselves last week."

"I couldn't sandblast it until it looks like new. I did actually use two colours but you can't see the contrast so much now - it was a hammered silver and a smooth silver.

Restored rail bridge in Largs (Image: Newsquest)

"So the smooth silver is on the inside of the flower decoration and it is just a shade dark but it is not enough for you to notice; and then we put the membrane down.

"We have been asking for the bridge to be re-painted for years now, and we decided we had waited long enough, and we had to do something about it.

"We purchased paint from Home Hardware and got a 10 per cent discount, and we raised the money by collecting money in a bucket from locals and tourists as they passed by last week when we did it.

The restoration work took several days of hard graft - but was full of laughter and fun with passers by offering encouragement (Image: Viking Garden)

"We got so many positive comments from the community as they passed by, with people telling us how bothered they were by the look of it.

"Well, it bothered me, and that is why I decided to go and do something about it.

"We have to thank the community for all their financial support as overall we raised £500 in the bucket which helped pay for the restoration.

"My son Jamie Carson, who is a welder, talked me through how to repair the crack in the roundel too.

"The bridge was really rusty and looked awful, and we just took it upon ourselves. It was all done by hand, and having the painting done was the easiest part.

Station garden volunteers helping out in restoration (Image: Viking Garden)

"It was all the scraping and the landscaping which took the longest and I did that part of it all by myself.

"I had help with the painting from some of the other volunteers, and it looks just grand now, so we are delighted.

"It is an old antique bridge with a beautiful rose roundel design in there, and I think it is just amazing. It is great having it resurrected.

Rail bridge before and after (Image: Newsquest)

"It took most of the week to sand it down, and it took us Saturday morning to paint it with four of us painting it so it was a real team effort.

"But it all couldn't have been done without the support of the Largs community who all put money in our bucket while working away on it.

"People came along and were so generous and said it was amazing we were doing it, as nobody was looking after it.

Viking garden volunteers in action (Image: Newsquest)

"Jewsons have given us a discount on the slate gravel which we are putting down next week too - it is a wonderful piece of Largs history and I am glad we did our bit to help preserve it."

The bridge over the Gogo Burn was built for the opening of the station in 1885 and considered a major boost for tourism in the town.

It was designed and constructed by Arrol Brothers of Glasgow, who were also responsible for supplying the pneumatic caissons used in the construction of the Forth Bridge.

While the Gogo Street side of the bridge was given a fresh re-paint a few years ago, the far side had been left unpainted, with some of the unique ring designs showing signs of wear and tear and cracking in places.

Anne added that although it was hard work, there was a lot of laughter and fun throughout last week as the volunteers got to work.