Our community has faced the heartbreaking loss of our historic bridges that stood the test of time and served as important links across the river Annan for generations.

These bridges were not just structures of steel and concrete; they were woven into the fabric of our daily lives and community history. Losing them was not just a loss of convenient infrastructure but a deep cultural and historic loss for everyone locally and visitors to our town. For many of us, these bridges were emblematic of our childhood, where we played by the riverside while adults swapped stories of past generations.

Dumfries and Galloway Council will not provide a letter of intent to adopt or maintain a replacement bridge, without which applications for funding a new build cannot proceed.

A new bridge will provide an alternative route access to the cemetery as well as Violetbank. It would also bolster tourism encouraging visitors to use either path along The Annandale Way thus enriching our local economy.

We cannot stand by and watch our local heritage become a distant memory when there are actionable solutions available. Therefore, we ask you to join us in demanding that our local council commits to adopting and maintaining our proposed replacement bridge.

We call on you to sign this petition to show our council that this bridge matters to us not just as a community but to the preservation of our cultural heritage for future generations.