'Rapid' erosion after wild weather forces indefinite closure of Duke of Wellington Bridge

The bridge crosses the Macquarie River at the junction where it meets the Bell river in Wellington and long-time locals say they've seen the bank being gradually eaten away since the opening of the Burrendong Dam in 1969.

But unusually wet weather over the past few months has exacerbated the erosion - with the bank losing more than 30 metres in a matter of months.

Dubbo Regional Council's Director of Infrastructure, Luke Ryan, said the erosion on the bank leading up to the bridge has been "quite rapid" and the bridge will remain closed until the road has been deemed safe.

"The road approach on the southern side of the Duke of Wellington Bridge has been compromised by the significant erosion of the bank from the recent flooding events," he said.

"At this stage, no concerns have been identified with the structural integrity of the bridge itself, however the immediate concerns are with the integrity of the road approach on the Bell River side of the bridge."

In May this year, the edge of Gobolion Street was 42 metres away from the top bank of the Macquarie River. By June, the riverbank had already lost 10 metres, measuring just 32 metres.

Now, following the most recent rain events, the council says the bank is "within approximately three metres" at maximum from the edge of the road.

The bank of the river is now "near vertical", Mr Ryan says, and the council has installed fencing to prevent access to the riverbank due to its unstable nature. He said residents should not enter the area around the bridge "for their own safety".

Other areas of concern council will be monitoring for erosion as the river levels drop are the western bank of the Bell River at Pioneer Park and the eastern bank of the Macquarie River north of the Tamworth Street pedestrian bridge through to Sandy Beach in Dubbo.

Mr Ryan said council has been successful in securing funds to stabilise the Pioneer Park section of the Bell River and is currently exploring options for how the riverbank near the Duke of Wellington Bridge can be stabilised.

"Council has been in contact with the Soil Conservation Service to review previous recommendations to address erosion at this particular location. This will aim to identify an appropriate bank erosion treatment along with costings for any such work," he said.

Further inspections of the structure of the bridge will be carried out when the river levels drop.

Dubbo Regional Council suggests drivers wishing to cross the Macquarie do so on the Macquarie Bridge on Lee Street.

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