A new railway bridge supporting a four-way roundabout above the West Coast Main Line in Stockport has reopened after a year-long overhaul.

Network Rail has invested £20m completely replacing Greek Street bridge to secure both the road above and railway below for the next 120 years.

Time-lapse footage of the project has been released to mark the reopening of the major junction linking Stockport with Edgeley.

Last August the former 67-year-old structure was removed and replaced with a new bridge comprised of 51 structural elements – all lifted in by crane during a 21-day railway closure.

Since then work to reinstate the carriageway, buried utilities like drainage, power cables and gas and water mains has taken place.

On the eve of the reopening on 26 March, local schoolchildren from St Matthew's and Our Lady's were given special road safety lessons now the road network will become much busier around their school.

Local business owners impacted by the essential upgrade also had the chance to meet the project team from contractor Murphy and Network Rail.

Patrick Vallely, Network Rail capital delivery head of buildings and civils, said: “Seeing traffic running smoothly once more at Greek Street is a proud moment for us all who’ve been working on this project for many years.

“Replacing Greek Street bridge was a massive feat of civil engineering which has impacted people right across Stockport for over a year, so I’d like to say a huge thank you to everyone for bearing with us. This essential project now secures the future of this structure and will provide a safe and reliable road and railway network for decades to come.”