Work to progress the design of the Forth Replacement Crossing has moved out into the Forth estuary itself this month, following the appointment of an experienced marine investigations contractor.
Glover Site Investigations Ltd has been awarded the £2.1 million contract to carry out marine investigations in the estuary over a ten week-period starting this week.
Marine investigation teams and supervising engineers from the Forth Replacement Crossing project team will carry out works along the line of the proposed new bridge crossing to develop a detailed picture of ground conditions beneath the sea bed and shoreline in key locations.
Working from two barges a team of up to 25 specialists will drill ten boreholes around the proposed base of the southern tower and approach piers, six in the vicinity of Beamer Rock - the proposed site of the central tower - and seven at the Northern tower and approach piers.
The investigations will provide vital information about geology beneath the seabed and will inform decisions about the location and type of bridge foundations used in the crossing.
Lawrence Shackman, Transport Scotland’s project manager for the Forth Replacement Crossing, said:
"A significant amount of work is taking place at the moment in the vicinity of the crossing to glean vital information which will feed into the design of the bridge and its approach roads.
"Ground investigations on the north and south side of the Forth and ecological surveys have been underway for a number of months. The marine investigations are a crucial piece of the jigsaw. As the findings of all of these works come together over the coming months, so our plans for the design of the bridge and the location of approach roads will become more defined."
Transport Scotland is working closely with the port authority, Forth Ports, in advance of the works to ensure that mariners are notified of the marine investigations. Investigations will not take place in the main shipping channels, ensuring the estuary can continue to operate as normal during the period of the works.
Information on the Forth Replacement Crossing can be found at www.forthreplacementcrossing.info
