October 28 2016

A preliminary artist’s impression of a 184m long swivelling road bridge connecting Clydebank with Renfrew Riverside has been published in a new scoping report prepared by engineering consultants Sweco A key plank of the £1.13bn Glasgow and Clyde Valley City Deal the infrastructure link is being led by Renfrewshire Council to connect both banks of the River Clyde between Ferry Road and Inchinnan Road.Designed to minimize its footprint within the river and surrounding floodplain it is intended that the bridge will accommodate pedestrian and cycle traffic using a design which ‘fits aesthetically’ with the surrounding landscape.Adopting a ‘twin leaf’ design the connection would allow river traffic to flow unimpeded post-construction with a span of 90m when opened.In their report Sweco said: “The bridge will span the navigation channel with a span(s) which will rotate through 90 degrees horizontally so that in its open position the opening span is parallel with the river. A back span acting as a counterweight to the opening span(s) will also be required.“The main opening span and back spans will consist of two steel box girder decks with a spine (probably of steel trussed construction with cladding) with the counterweight behind a pivot axis within the deck construction. The bridge will be supported on piled reinforced concrete piers and abutments.”To facilitate the new link some 2km of new single carriageway road will be constructed to plug into the existing road network.