Another major milestone has been achieved in the construction of the tramway in Edinburgh with beam installation for the last two bridges now completed meaning that all 12 bridges for the tramway now have their basic structures in place.
Speaking about the progress on these bridges Cllr Lesley Hinds, Transport Convener, said: “The pace of construction is now gaining real momentum and people are starting to see visible progress along the length of the route. While work on these two bridges will continue in the weeks ahead we are now in a position where the basic structures have been put in place. I would like to thank local communities affected by the construction process for their continued patience.”
The beams on the Water of Leith Bridge (near to Murrayfield Stadium) were installed over two weekends at the end of July/beginning of August whilst the work at South Gyle Access Bridge took place over just one weekend in August. Although there remains some work to
be completed on certain bridges across the line this is considered to be a major milestone in the construction of the tramway which is still on course for a 2014 opening.
In total across the line there were 12 bridges which have a combined length of 566 metres. The longest of these bridges is the Edinburgh Park Station Bridge which is 232 metres with the shortest being that at Balgreen Road (a Network Rail access bridge) which is just 9 metres long. Two bridges – Depot access bridge and Russell Road Bridge – are 20 metres wide with the narrowest being the Network Rail access bridge at Balgreen Road again which is only 4 metres wide.