A multi-million pound refurbishment of Edinburgh’s North Bridge, that has taken longer than the restoration of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, will be completed next month.
City council leader Jane Meagher told councillors that the bridge linking the new and old towns will fully reopen to traffic by the end of July, eight years after work began. It took five years to repair Notre Dame following the devastating fire in 2019.
Ms Meagher said: “This has been a complex and difficult project but I hope you’ll agree it has been worth it. The new façade is truly spectacular and it’s fantastic to see it restored to its former glory.”
Built in the 1890s, the bridge had not undergone a thorough refurbishment since the 1930s. A key part of the current £86m project has been blasting off layers of thick bituminous paint applied at that time and was disguising a lot of the underlying issues, such as corroded and missing steel. There was also a covering of pigeon guano.
While traffic and pedestrians will soon be able to cross the bridge unimpeded by roadworks, there is a possibility of further disriuption if it becomes part of the proposed north-south tram extension.
Councillors are considering it, along with South Bridge, for the next phase between Granton and the Bioquarter.
#North #Bridge #fully #reopen #repair #works #Daily #Business