The bridge will re-open to traffic, with no pedestrian access. The initial speed limit will be 40mph but after work has been completed to adapt the Forth Road Bridge public transport will be switched back to the old bridge and the Queensferry Crossing will become a 70mph motorway. The current Forth Road Bridge has been beset by problems since corrosion was found in its steel cables more than a decade ago.
The decision to replace it was taken in , with construction of the new crossing beginning in September Two years ago, the Forth Road Bridge was forced to close completely for three weeks while engineers repaired a serious defect in the metalwork, again underlining the need for the new bridge. The Queensferry Crossing, the longest three-tower, cable-stayed bridge in the world, will take the vast bulk of the current load and unlike the existing bridge it is expected to remain open in all weathers.
Designers say 3. Transport Scotland project director David Climie told BBC Scotland: "We expect the wind shields to almost entirely eliminate the need for closures during the frequent periods of high winds in the Forth estuary, apart from in exceptional circumstances. Mike Glover, who has managed the bridge project for the decade since it was first approved, told the BBC the crossing would last at least years because its design would make it easy to maintain.
The civil engineer said there were two main reasons for predicting such longevity. The deck of the new bridge will have two lanes in each direction as well as hard shoulders to ensure that breakdowns do not cause congestion. Designers claim this will also allow buses to be moved from the Forth Road Bridge in high winds or other dangerous weather conditions. As the new bridge will be a designated motorway, it means learner drivers and motorbikes under 50cc will not be allowed on it.
Mr Glover told the BBC that travelling across the new bridge would be much smoother than the current one, because it only has two joints on the whole deck.
John Swinney, the finance secretary at the time, said the lower cost was a result of "successful management" and the "delivery of key milestones". Mr Swinney also announced the new bridge, which has been completely publicly funded, would be toll-free like all other road bridges in Scotland. Nicola Sturgeon, who was then deputy first minister, said the project would be completed by the end of The bridge's technical director Mike Glover said the weather in the Firth of Forth had been "particularly unkind", especially at the point when they were m in the air attaching cables.
Toggle navigation. Home Forth Road Bridge Facts and figures. Facts and figures The Forth Road Bridge is a long span suspension bridge which when opened in was the largest in the world outside the United States and, together with the approach viaducts is a little over 2. Forth Road Bridge. Facts and figures. Construction gallery. About the bridge. Major projects. Truss end links repair.
Main expansion joint replacement. Main cable inspection. Main cable dehumidification. Main cable acoustic monitoring. Altogether, the construction of the bridge made use of 53,t of steel, 20, cubic metres m 3 of granite, 6,m 3 of stone, 49,m 3 of concrete, 50t of cement and 6. At the peak of construction, more than 4, workers were associated with building the railway bridge.
The painting work on the Forth Rail Bridge was completed in December and is expected to last for 25 years. Railtrack gave up the refurbishment contract in due to financial reasons. Under the ten year project, Balfour Beatty carried out the refurbishment works, which included the repair of the steels, coating of the surface, improvements to the access of the bridge and upgrade of the flood lightings.
The company used a method of blasting the old layers of paint which enabled the steel to be repaired. Zinc-based primer of 35 microns was used to prevent corrosion and microns of glass flake epoxy intermediate coating was used to act as a barrier, after which 35 microns of polyurethane gloss top coat was used to provide the finishing touches. The work involved up to 1, people at its peak, with an average of people working on the bridge daily.
Balfour Beatty used Pyeroy for the painting work and Harsco Infrastructure for the scaffolding work. Scaffolding work included enclosing the bridge in up to 4,t of scaffolding by reversing the established ground-up approach. The access platforms were enclosed in plastic sheeting to avoid paint being blasted into the environment and to protect the glass flake paints while drying. The painting work was done by shot-blasting the previous paint layers and applying primer, glass flake and polyurethane coatings.
Vital was appointed as the subcontractor for the automated track warning system ATWS , safety maintenance, support and safety road rail vehicles RRVs. The railway bridge carried about 30, passenger trains in with a gross weight of The bridge witnesses to train movements on a daily basis. And all these years later, it still does. Such has been the cultural impact and significance of this bridge that in — on its th anniversary — it was granted UNESCO world heritage status placing it alongside such greats as the Great Wall of China, the Acropolis and the Taj Mahal.
While the world of transportation has witnessed unimaginable advancements since , the Forth Bridge remains largely unchanged and still carries — trains every day. It is amazing to reflect that prior to the opening of the Forth Road Bridge there had been a ferry service in operation between the two Queensferry towns straddling the Forth from the 11th century all the way through to In its final year of operation, this ferry service still only consisted of four small ferries plying the 1.
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