He is not alone in his concerns.

With his property Calissa on both sides of the bridge, Mr Scollard crosses the 1.1km structure up to 10 times a week and is terrified he, or someone else, will be killed.

Five Wagga friends died on the old crossing when their car collided with a Melbourne-bound XPT in 2001, prompting the overpass to be built.

“Every time I take the four-wheel bike or the tractor over I’m not only taking my life into my own hands but I’m putting other drivers at risk,” he said.

But Mr Scollard has no choice.

The bridge is the only access the RTA has given him after six years of legal squabbling which has cost his family more than $100,000.

“It’s not the money I’m worried about, that’s gone, but the safety issue hasn’t,” he said.

“The RTA says it’s safe for me to wander over in my old tractor with its top speed of 25kmh with no flashing lights or escort to the other part of the property — but it’s not.”

For Mr Scollard the top 141m of the bridge, which has only 90cm of shoulder on either side, is like running the gauntlet.

If two trucks meet Mr Scollard and his tractor, or even the farmer and his bike, there isn’t room for them all.

Someone will have to stop — and with a speed limit of 100kmh that is difficult to do at such short notice.

But the anxiety doesn’t stop there and the southern descent of the bridge and entry into Rodgers Rd east has attracted just as much criticism.

With no turning lane, the junction was considered so dangerous the local school bus shifted its bus stop.

Gerogery farm worker Colin Ellis, who turns at Rodgers Rd east at least four times a day, said some contractors with large machinery refused to even cross it.

“I’ve had guys prefer to go down the Hume Highway and go around Perrymans Lane rather than go over it,” he said.

Wodonga livestock carrier Graham Simpson, who takes B-double trucks into Rodgers Rd east, also believes the junction is unsafe.

“Just to get in there I’ve got to swing into on-coming traffic to get around the corner — they just didn’t build it with any agricultural needs in mind at all,” he said.

Sympathy, however, is cold comfort for Mr Scollard who has been left with a divided farm, less land after an RTA compulsory acquisition and more risk.

His workload has increased because he refuses to let employees take farm machinery across the bridge.

His hay is all on one property and with drought fast approaching, Mr Scollard has no idea how he is going to feed his cattle.

Representations to Minister for Roads Joe Tripodi as late as February this year for a reduction in the bridge’s speed limit and for turning lanes have also attracted no positive response.

The RTA was contacted by The Border Mail but did not respond.