WORK is taking place this month on a series of historic North Yorkshire bridges damaged by modern-day traffic.

Parapet repairs to bridges at Buttercrambe, Gilling East and Nunnington, which are all Grade II listed, are being carried out by North Yorkshire County Council.

Work on Kirkham Bridge, classed as an ancient monument, is also due to take place over a five-day period.

A spokesman for the council said the bridges would have to be closed while the work is done.

"Most of the work is for parapet repairs and the closures are just to make sure that it is safe for the people working there," he said.

"The repairs are the results of accident damage where vehicles have clipped the corners.

"They are basically very old structures and modern traffic is giving them a bad time."

He said each of the bridges would be rebuilt exactly as it stood, at a cost of about £4,000 to £5,000 per bridge.

Rosedale Abbey Bridge is also due to be closed for five days while additional strengthening work and re-decking is carried out.

Updated: 09:17 Friday, March 07, 2003