However, over the next few years the state of these wooden bridges deteriorated so much that they eventually had to be closed to vehicle traffic for safety reasons. While they were officially restricted to pedestrian traffic, some motorists still attempted to use the bridges. While the Hutt County Council decided to replace the bridge over the Akatarawa River, it chose not to repair the main wooden bridge over the Hutt River and instead chose close the bridge in November 1953 and subsequently removed the deck, leaving only the substructure that carried the Upper Hutt water supply and other services. In October 1998 another flood so damaged the remaining piers and structure of this 1880s vintage bridge that it needed to be demolished. There is now little physical evidence to show where this bridge crossed the Hutt River other than power lines that align with a paper road shown on some maps.