Towong Bridge

The much-anticipated new Towong Bridge opened to traffic on Tuesday 18 July, with the first cars officially driving across it soon after the community got together to celebrate the exciting milestone.

About 140 people gathered at the campground on the NSW side of the bridge for the community celebration which saw the Murray River crossing reopened after a 15-month closure.

The brand new 58-metre long bridge can carry more traffic and heavier loads, and will require less maintenance. It also has a two-metre wide shared path to improve connectivity in the area.

Corryong resident and special guest John Whitehead was seven years old when the old Towong Bridge was completed in 1938.

Mr Whitehead and students from two local schools joined together in the middle of the bridge to perform the official ribbon cutting.

Mr Whitehead remembers watching the progress of the original build almost every day on his way to school and at weekends, and now at 93 said he had enjoyed visiting the new bridge site each week with his wife Maxine to oversee progress.

Timber from the old bridge will be given to councils on both sides of the river to use in local projects to celebrate the old bridge.

Signs will be located along the bridge telling the story of the area and the historical significance of the crossing.

Towong Bridge is a timber beam bridge, built in 1938 and crossing the Murray River between Bringenbrong, in NSW, and Towong, in Victoria.

In 2016, a temporary support solution was installed to extend the life of the current bridge to resist regular flooding events that are common on the upper Murray River. These repairs extended the bridge’s life but it now needs to be replaced.

A project is currently in planning to remove the current bridge and replace it with a new, 11-metre wide, 58-metre long concrete bridge, incorporating two traffic lanes and a pedestrian walkway.

Pictured 3D view of the proposed Towong Bridge replacement.

The project will be carried out in two stages: removal of the existing timber bridge and construction of the new bridge.

Work is expected to start in 2022 and will take about 18 months to complete, weather permitting.

The project’s objectives include:

• providing a modern structure with minimal maintenance for the next 25 years
• ensuring a safe crossing for all users by addressing bridge safety concerns
• ensuring the bridge is capable of withstanding current and future traffic loads.

Transport for NSW takes its responsibility to the environment and heritage seriously.

To ensure we are recognising and minimising all impacts to the environment from this proposed project, Transport for NSW has created a Review of Environmental Factors (REF) report.

An REF is an environmental assessment used to determine all risks and possible mitigation measures on proposed projects. If risks cannot be appropriately managed, the proposal will not proceed.

The REF was on display for community feedback from Monday 30 August to Friday 24 September 2021.

The feedback period is now closed. Thank you to everyone who submitted feedback.

A submissions report in response to the community’s comments is now in planning and is expected to be available via this website in coming months.

To read the REF in full see the Project Documents section on this page.

Transport will continue to monitor and maintain the new bridge. We will keep the community updated.

• August 2021 project notification
  Have your say on the Towong Bridge Review of Environmental Factors report by Friday 24 September.

• Review of Environmental Factors (REF) submissions report
• August 2021 Review of Environmental Factors
  Towong Bridge replacement.

• August 2021 frequently asked questions
  Towong Bridge replacement.