More delays on the cards for Wingham bridge rebuild as council readies for government review

Residents of Wingham and Tinonee can expect to wait until at least the back end of 2028 for the return of the Bight Bridge, with a commonwealth review threatening to slow things down further.

The bridge, which connects the two communities across the Manning River, was destroyed by major flooding in May 2025.

Replacement of the bridge is expected to cost around $35 million.

It will be funded under Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements (DRFA), in which both federal and state governments pitch in.

The process: In March it was announced the NSW Reconstruction Authority would provide funding for a detailed design of the proposed replacement. 

Council has received over $12 million for the project to date.

At MidCoast Council’s meeting on Wednesday, Director of Infrastructure and Engineering Services Rob Scott said the design was 80 percent complete. 

What’s next: Scott is hoping for construction to commence in early 2027.

• “Twelve to 18 months from then, you would be expecting the replacement bridge to be in place,” he said.

Federal review: Scott warned councillors last week of a potential “complication” in the process, in the form of an “Independent Technical Review” from the federal government. 

The review has been automatically triggered due to the project cost being more than $25 million. 

It can only begin when all the council’s design work is finalised.

Scott said no timeline had been given for the review, however a source within the state government suggested to the Mid North Coaster it would likely take three months. 

Bridge plans: The new bridge is set to be installed downstream of the old bridge, and will have a slightly higher deck level, required due to damage to the embankment in the floods.

The bridge itself will not be significantly higher than the original however, as the funding only allows for like-for-like replacement.

Image credit: MidCoast Council.