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They've been something of a sore point and many people will be relieved once they've been removed in a rather costly operation.

The designers of the had originally intended people to see it floating above the Tyne with its graceful curves reflected in the gentle flowing surface of the river. Instead they got fat ugly metal poles poking their heads above the water and ruining the aesthetics of the engineering masterpiece.

. The then Tyne harbourmaster, Capt. Gary Wilson, had insisted that safety bollards would have to be installed to stop shipping colliding with the bridge.

Despite protests the harbourmaster's say-so was final and reluctantly the council sunk the dull grey bollards into the riverbed.

I made a documentary about the creation of the bridge and I recall that in some quarters the unwelcome safety barriers were rather unkindly referred to as "the Harbourmaster's Piles".

Time appears to have taken some of the heat out of the spat. Earlier this month and it was applying for the bollards' removal.

Soon you'll get a clean view of the Tyne Bridge from the centre of the river. The current view (pictured right) may even become a collectors' item in years to come.

It will cost £650,000 to get rid of the eyesore - almost the same if they were kept and had to be maintained for the lifetime of the bridge.

They say you never miss something until it's gone. I doubt anyone will mourn the surgical removal of these piles.

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