Revamped transporter bridge visitor centre to offer activities for schoolchildren

Nicholas Thomas – Local democracy reporter

A new visitor centre at the site of a historic transporter bridge that spans the River Usk will offer “really great” activities and spaces for schoolchildren, a council has heard.

City councillors were told that a “soft launch” of the centre at Newport’s famous Transporter Bridge had proved successful – but a full opening is not possible while bridge restoration works continue.

“Repair and refurbishment” work on the Grade I listed structure, one of the few of its kind remaining in the world, will “ensure it remains operational and accessible to visitors”, according to a new council report.

This includes replacing and repainting cables, repairing the gondola, and grit-blasting “large sections” of the boom.

Bad weather

The £16.9 million project has “visibly progressed” but has been held up by factors “including storms and periods of bad weather”, however.

A visitor centre “soft launch” went ahead in November 2024, after that part of the project reached “practical completion”, allowing local dignitaries and community members to tour the new attraction.

Speaking during a council scrutiny committee, Cllr Matthew Pimm asked how the new visitor centre would be an “attractive place” for young people to visit, including on school trips.

Cllr Emma Stowell-Corten, the cabinet member for culture, said the new visitor centre includes “lots of great interactive” activities for children.

It also houses a “multi-use” space where other activities or sessions can be arranged and held, she added.

‘Special’

“It’s really, really great – it’s not just a blank space,” Cllr Stowell-Corten assured the committee.

Tracey Brooks, the council’s head of regeneration and economic development, said the visitor centre would be “really quite special” and had already welcomed some schoolchildren as part of the site’s partial launch.

“I was blown away by the amount of stuff that was there for members of the public”, added committee chairman Cllr Mark Howells, who said he had visited the attraction during the soft launch.

Meanwhile, the committee report also included an update on plans for the city’s Medieval Ship, which is yet to be given a permanent home following its restoration.

A “long-term strategy” for the ship is currently expected to be completed by next spring, and the council has hired consultants to work on “scoping options” for its reassembly and display.

A final report on those options is expected halfway through the current financial year.