Govan-Partick Bridge

The Govan-Partick Bridge is a new bridge in Glasgow, Scotland, to carry pedestrians and bicycles across the River Clyde, connecting Water Row in Govan to Pointhouse Quay in Partick, close to the Riverside Museum. To allow ships including PS Waverley to pass by, its swing bridge main span can rotate to align with the south shore. The official opening ceremony on 6 September 2024 was followed by public access from the next day, when crowds celebrated with community events on both sides of the river.

The 110-metre (361-foot) bridge with its 8 m (26 ft) wide deck has step-free access, to carry bicycles, pedestrians, wheelchairs and buggies between Govan south of the river and Partick to the north. The V-shaped pylon design is inspired by the historic cranes at the riverside. It is one of the largest opening footbridges in Europe.

The work is intended to improve the economic conditions in Govan (which is a deprived area of the city) and is linked to the University of Glasgow and Glasgow City Council-led 'West End Innovation Quarter'. The bridge lands at Water Row in Govan where a mixed use development of housing and commercial space is planned.

History

The bridge cost £29.5million. It was funded through the Glasgow City Region City Deal, a pot to which the UK and Scottish Governments each provided £500m, and local authorities provided a further £130m. The Glasgow City Council led project was expected to start in 2020, with the bridge to open in summer 2021. In February 2020, the final plans for the bridge were revealed with an updated opening year of 2022. After further delays, construction finally began in January 2022, and opened on 6 September 2024.

The bridge was built in Belgium, taken by canal to Westdorpe in the Netherlands, where the pylon and cabling was installed. It was loaded onto HEBO Maritiemservice pontoon Hebo-P84, and from 7 to 13 October 2023 towed by tug Elisa to the Firth of Clyde. They were met at the Tail of the Bank by Clyde Marine Services tugs CMS Wrestler and Bruiser. Delivery was postponed due to strong gusting wind, and the vessels stayed at Greenock Ocean Terminal overnight.

On 14 October 2023 the tugs towed the crane on its pontoon up the River Clyde into Glasgow, to Pointhouse Quay just upriver from the museum. They moored the pontoon just past floating sheerleg crane Hebo-Lift 10 which was already there, along with the small tug Avontuur 2. On 17 October the floating sheerleg crane lifted the moving main span of the bridge into place on its pivot in front of Water Row, Govan, leaving it aligned with the shore so that the Clyde remains open to shipping. Site work continued. The connecting fixed span, still on the pontoon, was taken away for storage, then installed in the summer of 2024 once the north pier and approach path works were sufficiently complete.

The bridge opened on 7 September 2024.

Text imported from Wikipedia article "Govan–Partick Bridge" and modified on December 5, 2024 according to the CC-BY-SA 4.0 International license.