PLANS to reroute vehicles from a 200-year-old iron bridge have moved a step closer after councillors backed a proposal to create a new bypass crossing. Chris Plant, the authority’s structure manager, said:“Chetwynd Bridge is the county’s highest priority bridge scheme – we have a heritage structure that is a restricted A-route and has been restricted since 2019 with traffic lights. The solution is we need a new bridge to bypass the existing heritage structure and the heritage structure will be preserved. It would also provide a vital route to alleviate the impact of local flooding which isolates rural communities.” “This is a nationally significant heritage structure and a vital route for one of the country’s most important places of remembrance.