A new viaduct costing £2.5 million should be built as soon as possible to replace the existing structure on the east side of Upton Bridge.

The project means diverting traffic along a temporary road through Boye Meadow Caravan Park, which will be temporarily relocated.

Worcestershire County Council announced the news at a public meeting in the town last Thursday.

Officers said tests had revealed the existing viaduct to be unstable and work on a replacement was a matter of urgency.

Work is expected to begin after the jazz festival in June and be completed by spring 2005.

The county council said raising the A4104 to alleviate flooding problems, as previously suggested, was highly unlikely at this stage. Paul Jameson, head of highways, said that a survey was carried out last year to look at the viability and cost of rebuilding the road between the bridge and the edge of the flood plain to the east.

He said: "The cost was in the region of £6 million to £7 million and the time needed to get funding approval, design the works and implement the scheme means it could not be carried out for at least four years.

"Work must be carried out on the viaduct as soon as possible, as the local economy of Upton relies heavily on tourism."

The viaduct will be made of steel and concrete and be 432 metres long. It will be supported on 24 piles driven 18 metres into the ground and be a similar width to the existing structure.

It will be 1.2 metre higher and slope gradually down to the existing road level near the marina. It will be designed to be further raised if the height of the road is increased in the future.

Bill Dovey, chairman of Upton Tourism and Trade Association said: "I think the main consensus was that it would be the best way forward.

"There has been a downturn in trade and it has hit some people more than others but hopefully once they can get that road through and get two-way traffic in, things will go back to normal."

After meeting with the Pershore and Upton branch of the NFU, MP Sir Michael Spicer has written to the county council to stress the importance of making the temporary road of sufficient strength and width to accommodate agricultural vehicles. The county council has confirmed that this will be a minimum requirement and that the road will ideally cope with all types of vehicles.

The council also says that work on dismantling the viaduct will not begin until the diversion road is ready. The contractor will work from the Fish Meadow side.