Sturgeon hails bridge progress

DEPUTY FIRST Minister Nicola Sturgeon yesterday saw for herself how the £1.4 billion Queensferry Crossing was taking shape as the project reached a major milestone.

Bridge engineers took Ms Sturgeon to see a 100-metre-long section of deck which will be pushed out across the water from the south side of the Forth in the coming months.

Ms Sturgeon said: “Anybody who lives in Fife and anybody who lives in this part of Scotland knows the importance of good transport links. That’s why the construction of this bridge is so important.

“This is a major achievement we’re seeing taking place before our eyes.”

Initially predicted to be between £1.45bn and £1.6bn, the cost of the project has been revised to between £1.4bn and £1.45bn.

“We’ve got a situation here where this is delivering massive economic benefits now,” Ms Sturgeon added.

“There are 850 people working on this site. It’s going to deliver massive economic benefits for many, many years to come, and we’re seeing that under budget, so it’s releasing savings for other parts of the Scottish budget as well.”

By the end of 2014, the 1.7-mile-long bridge will start to take shape as the towers appear out of the water and the deck is fitted into place.

The project has been opposed by the Scottish Green Party, which claimed that, combined with the existing Forth Road Bridge, it would create an “eight-lane motorway over the Forth”.

However, Transport Scotland has said the existing bridge would be a dedicated public transport corridor.

Pictures: Ian Jacobs. Work under way on the £1.4 billion Queensferry Crossing. A 100-metre-long section of deck will be pushed out across the Forth in the coming months.