Spikes will be installed on a bridge in Frome to tackle pesky pigeons after the footpath was made dangerously slippery by an abundance of bird poo.
Rodden Bridge, which allows a rail line to cross over Rodden Road, is to undergo a pigeon proofing transformation after local people complained the amount of bird faeces on the footpath below was making it slippery to walk along.
Winter was said to be when the problem was at its worst – and local people “have no easy way to avoid” taking the perilous poop-laden path, said one council expert.
The Bridge, which allows a rail line to cross over Rodden Road, is to be given a thorough cleaning and have pigeon spikes installed on its abutments.
The news comes after people revealed they were fed-up with the amount of litter in the town and an incident involving chips being left on a car which saw the town go viral online, with #Frome and #Chipgate trending on Twitter.
Town councillors have had enough too, and have made almost 40 complaints to Mendip District Council since the beginning of August.
Meanwhile, one man revealed a litany of food attacks in the town, telling tales of chips shoved up car exhausts and macaroni cheese being dumped on a windscreen.
MORE: Vandals ‘ransacked’ and ‘drew graffiti’ in Frome school and stole tools
Frome Town Council (FTC) and Network Rail are teaming up to solve this latest street detritus problem.
FTC is forking out close to £4,000 towards the works, with Network Rail matching that amount.
Rodden Road will be closed from Monday, November 7 to Friday, November 11 between the hours of 10pm and 6am, while the works take place.
The footpath reportedly becomes more slippery in the winter due to excessive amounts of bird poo
Paul Wynne, Town Clerk for FTC, said council was joining the fight against the footpath faeces even though it did not own the bridge or have any responsibility for the cleanliness and upkeep of the road and pavement underneath.
Mr Wynne said the project was a little outside the council’s remit but the authority felt it was the thing to do.
He said: “Even though it is outside the norm these works should help keep the road and the pavement cleaner and it’s for this reason we feel it’s right to contribute to this project.
“Necessarily, the works will involve a road closure here but we’re hopeful that Network Rail and County Highways will do it at night.
“Sensibly, Network Rail is planning to use the closure to complete some guttering repairs and other improvements to the bridge too.”
Chris Stringer, Environment Manager for the town council, said that he had received a number of complaints from locals on the bird poo around that area.
He said: “A number of locals have said that it makes it slippery to walk across, particularly in the winter when the effects of the pigeons are at their worst.
“There is only one foot path under that bridge and so as you can imagine there is no easy way to avoid it.”
Have you experienced problems with pigeon poo on the walkway underneath Rodden Bridge? Send in your pictures to James Wood on [email protected]
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