MOTORISTS travelling along the M2 today may notice that the Taddington Bridge at Chatham is no more. But only a few people know what an effort went into blowing up the bridge at junction three and reopening the motorway in just 48 hours.

The bridge was the seventh to be knocked down as part of the M2 widening scheme and was the highest of all. Work started a month ago when the bridge, built to carry traffic joining and leaving the coastbound slip roads, was closed. Engineers started stripping the surface off the bridge and planting explosives in the beams and piers of the bridge.

Residents in nearby streets, including Hallsfield Road and Sadlers Close, were paid to move out for the weekend. The Highways Agency encouraged the public to stay away from the explosion early Saturday morning for safety reasons.

But they couldn't put off six or seven enthusiasts who gathered on the slip road and on the next bridge along, at Bridgewood, ready for the demolition at 4am.

Newspaper photographers and TV cameramen were poised to capture the moment, but suddenly the bridge shook and crumbled to the ground with an almighty crash taking them by surprise.

The compulsory warning siren was in fact a faint whistle which few people heard. As the bridge fell, a dust cloud rose above the M2 but soon settled to reveal the bridge lying on the motorway in three or four pieces. That's when the real work began to get the motorway back to normal for reopening at 10pm yesterday.