Queensferry Crossing

Queensferry Crossing
Artist's impression of the Queensferry Crossing (left) alongside the Forth Road Bridge (centre) and the Forth Bridge (right)
Coordinates	56°00′17″N 3°24′45″W / 56.0046°N 3.4124°W / 56.0046; -3.4124Coordinates: 56°00′17″N 3°24′45″W / 56.0046°N 3.4124°W / 56.0046; -3.4124
Crosses	Firth of Forth
Locale	Lothian and Fife, Scotland
Characteristics
Design	Cable-stayed bridge
Total length	2,700 metres (8,858 ft)
Width	Dual two-lane carriageway with hard shoulders
Longest span	650 metres (2,133 ft)
History
Constructed by	Forth Crossing Bridge Constructors (FCBC)
Construction begin	September 2011
Construction end	May 2017 (projected)
Construction cost	£1.35 billion (estimated)
Queensferry Crossing Location of the bridge in relation to Edinburgh

The Queensferry Crossing (formerly the Forth Replacement Crossing) is a road bridge under construction in Scotland. It is being built alongside the existing Forth Road Bridge and will carry the M90 motorway across the Firth of Forth between Lothian, at South Queensferry, and Fife, at North Queensferry.

Proposals for a second Forth road crossing were first put forward in the 1990s, but it was not until the discovery of structural issues with the Forth Road Bridge in 2005 that plans were moved forward. The decision to proceed with a replacement bridge was taken at the end of 2007; the following year it was announced that the existing bridge would be retained as a public transport link. The Forth Crossing Act received Royal Assent in January 2011, and construction began in September 2011.

The Queensferry Crossing will be a cable-stayed bridge, with an overall length of 2.7 kilometres (1.7 miles). Around 4 kilometres (2.5 miles) of new connecting roads will be built, including new and upgraded junctions at Ferrytoll in Fife, South Queensferry and Junction 1A on the M9. It will be the third bridge across the Forth at Queensferry, alongside the Forth Road Bridge completed in 1964, and the Forth Bridge completed in 1890. The bridge was due to be completed by December 2016, however that date has been put back to May 2017 due to weather delays slowing construction, with 25 days lost due to high winds during April and May 2016. Following a public vote, it was formally named on 26 June 2013.

The Forth Road Bridge opened in 1964, replacing a centuries-old ferry crossing. Proposals for an additional road crossing at Queensferry were drawn up in the early 1990s, as part of the "Setting Forth" consultation document prepared by the Scottish Office. The plans met stiff opposition from environmentalists and from the City of Edinburgh Council on the grounds of the increased traffic. Following the Labour victory in the 1997 general election, the proposals were shelved.

The existing bridge had a planned design life of 120 years, but by the early years of the 21st century the planned theoretical capacity for the bridge was being routinely exceeded. It was designed for up to 11 million vehicles per year, but this had risen steadily to 23 million vehicles in 2006. Between 2003 and 2005, an inspection programme found that the main suspension cables had suffered an estimated 8–10% loss of strength as a result of corrosion. Projections highlighted the likelihood of an accelerating loss of strength, with traffic restrictions to limit loading required in 2014 in the worst-case scenario.