First drivers make their way across Scotland's new £1,350,000,000 bridge






Cars finally made their way across the Queensferry Bridge after a lengthy 
construction process (Picture: PA)

The Queensferry Crossing’s opening was met with a loud
welcome as motorists drove over it for the first time on Wednesday.
Shortly before 2am, northbound traffic was diverted from the
Forth Road Bridge to the new £1.35 billion structure.

Cabinet Secretary for the Economy Keith Brown was among the 
first to cross it. A long procession followed police vehicles, with
many of those behind the wheel honking their horns and blowing
whistles as they travelled over it.
He said: ‘It’s fantastic. You immediately notice coming over the
new bridge – as traffic is now doing – the absence of the slap, slap,
slap that you get on the existing bridge.
Queensferry Crossing opens


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First drivers make their way across Scotland's new £1,350,000,000 bridge
Traffic over the bridge has steadily been building throughout the morning (Picture: PA)
First drivers make their way across Scotland's new £1,350,000,000 bridge
Shortly before 2am, northbound traffic was diverted from the Forth Road Bridge to the
new £1.35 billion structure (Picture: PA)
First drivers make their way across Scotland's new £1,350,000,000 bridge
There was a light show on the bridge to celebrate its opening (Picture: PA)

‘It’s a very smooth passage right across the Queensferry Crossing.
Also, just the excitement of looking at this fantastic new structure
from a new angle.
‘I think it will be extremely well-received by the people in Scotland
who are going to use this bridge.’

Linking the Lothians and Fife, the new crossing is the longest 
three-tower, cable-stayed bridge in the world.The 1.7-mile crossing
has a projected life of 120 years but could last longer as it has
been ‘designed for maintenance’ to ensure it runs smoothly for
decades.
On Monday night a collection of vintage, modern and electric
vehicles drove on the structure in a procession to mark the
symbolic handover from contractors to the Scottish Government.

First drivers make their way across Scotland's new £1,350,000,000 bridge
A long procession followed police vehicles, with many of those behind the wheel honking
their horns and blowing whistles as they travelled over it (Picture: PA)
First drivers make their way across Scotland's new £1,350,000,000 bridge
There’s a 40mph speed limit at the moment to prevent ‘driver distraction’ (Picture: PA)

It was followed by a light show across the crossing to celebrate
the completion of the biggest infrastructure project in Scotland in
a generation.
In the early hours of Friday, the new bridge will be closed again to
prepare for a public walk on the crossing and a royal visit from the
Queen on Monday.
A total of 50,000 invited members of the public will have the chance
to walk across it on Saturday and Sunday.
Motorists will be able to drive across it after it has reopened on
Thursday, September 7.

 The crossing is essentially an extension of the M90 motorway 
across the Forth with a 70mph speed limit, although operators said
an initial 40mph limit will be in place when the bridge first opens to
take account of ‘driver distraction’.

First drivers make their way across Scotland's new £1,350,000,000 bridge
The 1.7-mile crossing has a projected life of 120 years but could last longer as it has 
been ‘designed for maintenance’ to ensure it runs smoothly for decades (Picture: PA)
First drivers make their way across Scotland's new £1,350,000,000 bridge
Linking the Lothians and Fife, the new crossing is the longest three-tower, cable-stayed
bridge in the world (Picture: PA)
First drivers make their way across Scotland's new £1,350,000,000 bridge
On Monday night a collection of vintage, modern and electric vehicles drove on the 
structure in a procession to mark the symbolic handover from contractors to
the Scottish Government (Picture: PA)

Mr Brown said: ‘That’s when you get to the real advantages, in
terms of reduced journey times, and also when you have that
division of traffic between the two bridges, with public transport
going on one bridge and all other traffic on the other bridge.
‘It’s just a stunning bridge to look at, more so in the daytime. Not
only is this the best bridge in the world, but it sits with two other
bridges.

Construction began in 2011, with numerous records and milestones 
marked along the way.‘A different bridge from each of three
different centuries in the same location. There’s nowhere else
in the world I can think of like that.’
The need for a new bridge emerged in 2004 when inspections of
the Forth Road Bridge’s main cables found a loss of strength.

First drivers make their way across Scotland's new £1,350,000,000 bridge
It was followed by a light show across the crossing to celebrate the completion of the 
biggest infrastructure project in Scotland in a generation (Picture: PA)
First drivers make their way across Scotland's new £1,350,000,000 bridge
In the early hours of Friday, the new bridge will be closed again to prepare for a public 
walk on the crossing and a royal visit from the Queen on Monday (Picture: PA)
First drivers make their way across Scotland's new £1,350,000,000 bridge
A total of 50,000 invited members of the public will have the chance to walk across it 
on Saturday and Sunday (Picture: PA)
First drivers make their way across Scotland's new £1,350,000,000 bridge
Motorists will be able to drive across it after it has reopened on Thursday, September 7 
(Picture: PA)
First drivers make their way across Scotland's new £1,350,000,000 bridge
The crossing is essentially an extension of the M90 motorway across the Forth with
a 70mph speed limit (Picture: PA)