Restoration works on the historic bridge on the Keizerinnedreef in Tervuren park should be completed this summer. Delays have been caused by the need to carry out more in-depth restoration than previously envisaged.
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“The works have been delayed because the restoration of a number of elements. Balustrade, wind bracing, brackets, are taking longer than anticipated. They were in worse condition than first thought,” says Nele Heerwegh from Belgium’s federal agency. “This was only discovered after sandblasting the elements, after all the old layers of paint had been removed,” she told Tervuren+.
The protected 20-meter long bridge dates from 1896. “It was designed by French landscape architect Elie Lainé, who was commissioned by Leopold II to design the French gardens at the park of Tervuren,” adds Heerwegh. After determining the original color of the metal parts, the restaurateurs have opted for light grey, giving a totally different look with bridge now painted black. “Old postcards still show this lighter color,” says Heerwegh.
Flora and fauna will soon be able to recover from the works with restoration now scheduled to end “for summer 2024”.
In May 2023, when the €1.5mn works began, an estimated completion date was set for mid-March. It forms a main axis to the symmetrical French gardens, designed by Elie Lainé in 1895.
Belgium’s federal property agency says the bridge has no longer been accessible for vehicles for several years, only for cyclists, mopeds and pedestrians. The current structure no longer met safety and stability requirements.
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