Rouen Bridge Reopens

Pont Mathilde will reopen to traffic at 5pm today, 26th August 2014, 22 months after the important Rouen bridge was damaged in a fire leading to major diversions around Rouen for drivers.

Opening ceremonies will take place on the bridge between 11am and 3pm today before it is cleared and made ready for vehicles to cross.

In October 2012 a petrol tanker crossed the central reservation, crashed and caught fire on the Pont Mathilde; several vehicles beneath the bridge were destroyed in the conflagration and while no-one was seriously injured, the damage to the bridge was severe. Work to repair the bridge had started in September 2013.

In October 2013 the driver of the lorry was given an eight-month suspended sentence for causing the accident.