A £500,000 plan to restore one of the most historic footbridges in Sussex has been unveiled.

Shoreham Toll Bridge, which crosses the River Adur, was built in 1781 and had £100,000 spent on it in 1983.

Now West Sussex county councillors have been told the time has come to decide whether to do nothing and wait for the timber-decked bridge to be closed on safety grounds or build a new one.

The Cabinet member for environmental services, Councillor Harold Hall, said he wants to see the existing bridge refurbished, which will extend its life by at least another 30 years.

The council has promised £100,000 towards the cost of the project, which will come from a special fund set up to pay for Millennium projects.

But Coun Hall said the money would only be available if matching funding from other organisations could be found and a bid was made to the Heritage Lottery Fund to cover 60 per cent of the cost.

Experts said building a new bridge would cost £600,000 but the council would still face the expense of preventing people from using the toll bridge, which cannot be demolished because it is a listed structure.

A report to councillors makes it clear if the council left the bridge to rot it could eventually face legal action because it is a public bridleway used by walkers, cyclists and horse riders.

It says: "The do-nothing option would be to continue to use the bridge until its use can no longer be contemplated on safety grounds.

"It is not easy to predict when this might occur. The bridleway would also be out of repair and legal action may be taken against the county council to force it to provide a bridge."

Coun Hall has also been told that if the bridge had to be closed it would inconvenience people working at the Shoreham airport site who use it to walk to work and that would push more cars on to roads.

A report prepared by planning and environment experts predicted that a restored bridge could also become a tourist attraction for Shoreham.

"Signs highlighting the history of the bridge and its role in the social and economic development of the area would prove a valuable addition to promoting interest in these sites."