Dresden, Germany - Senior officials in the German city of Dresden rejected on Friday a deadline from UNESCO to halt construction work on a steel highway bridge across the Elbe Valley.

On Thursday, the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, meeting in Quebec, Canada, gave Germany one more year to reconsider, or else a park-like, 20-kilometre-long stretch of the valley would lose its heritage status.

Dresden, occupying both banks of the Elbe, is the expanding capital of the state of Saxony. Both the state and the city government insist on the suburban road link to end city-centre traffic jams. Piers for the bridge are being built now.

Helma Orosz, who is set to take office soon as mayor of Dresden, said, "From Dresden's point of view, the resolution is wrong, does not make sense and is unfair."

Peter Zimmermann, a spokesman for the state government, said, "If UNESCO had been sure of itself, it would have either removed the status now or waited till the bridge was finished. I don't think it's very likely Dresden will dismantle the bridge now."

City officials have rejected UNESCO's urging to build a tunnel instead, saying it is too late and would cost far more. The UNESCO committee rates the site "at risk" and is set to rule in one year's time whether to de-list it.

Germany's Foreign Ministry offered Friday "to assist the city of Dresden in the search for a consensus" with UNESCO.

"The opportunity to establish a consensus between the protective ideals of the World Heritage Centre and the desires of the people of Dresden remains in place for a further year," said a junior minister at the ministry, Guenter Gloser.

He welcomed the deadline extension, saying it showed how much the committee valued cooperation with Germany.

The stretch of valley, lined with gardens, meadows and palaces, became a UNESCO site in 2004 and was put on the at-risk list two years later. Dresden residents voted in
2005 in favour of the Waldschoesschen bridge across a meadow area.

If the valley loses UNESCO support it would be the first of 32 sites in Germany to be stripped of its world heritage status. There are 851 UNESCO heritage sites around the world. (dpa)