Landmark new canal bridge set to link North Glasgow communities

New bridge in North Glasgow over the Forth & Clyde canal will connect local communities.

A landmark new footbridge over the Forth & Clyde Canal in North Glasgow is set to permanently link three communities in the north of the city for the first time since the waterway opened in 1790.

A planning application for the new Stockingfield Bridge has been submitted, with construction expected to commence this autumn. The project, delivered by Scottish Canals with funding from Sustrans and the Glasgow City Council Vacant Derelict Land Fund, will provide a new traffic-free link between the communities of Maryhill, Gilshochill and Ruchill – as well as spectacular views over the city.

Matt MacDonald, Head of Infrastructure and Delivery at Sustrans Scotland, said: “The Stockingfield Bridge will deliver transformative change for communities in north Glasgow, creating an attractive place that gives many people quicker and easier access to shops, schools and National Cycle Network Route 754, which is a gateway to walking and cycle routes stretching across the country.”

“We look forward to this new link between communities becoming a new landmark for the area and place that the three local communities can be proud of.”

Cyclists and walkers currently have to use the narrow pavement of a busy and unlit road tunnel under the canal in order to move between the three communities. The new bridge will enable users to safely cross the junction on the towpath of the Forth & Clyde Canal, opening up access to the wider National Walking Cycling Network and the city centre. The design of the bridge was shaped by a public consultation held in the local area and online in autumn 2018.

As well as opening up access, it’s hoped the bridge will provide a landmark for the area. The ‘spire’ of the twin-span, cable-stayed suspension bridge will tower some 100 feet over the waterway and will be lit by a state-of-the-art LED lighting system inspired by that of another modern monument of the canal – The Kelpies, the world’s largest pair of equine sculptures. It’s hoped the bridge will be shining through the Glasgow night by autumn 2021.

With a 300% increase in usage over the last decade, the towpaths of Scotland’s canals provide safe, off-road travel and recreation for all ages and abilities. Over the past decade Scottish Canals, Sustrans, local authorities and other organisations have jointly invested more than £10 million upgrading Scotland’s towpaths, creating important links between rural communities and vital active travel arteries in some of the nation’s busiest cities.

On completion, Stockingfield Bridge will allow cyclists and walkers to travel from Glasgow to Bowling on the Firth of Clyde and The Kelpies at Grangemouth using only the safe, traffic-free routes of the towpaths.

If you would like to read more articles like this then please click here.

If you are interested in finding out more about key infrastructure trends today, you may wish to attend the flagship infrastructure exhibition at the NEC in April 2019: UKIS 2019

Register for your delegate place now: UK Infrastructure Show 2019.