Skip to main content

Scotland’s Queensferry Crossing to open in summer 2017?

If good weather conditions continue then Scotland’s new Queensferry Crossing should open to traffic between July and August of this year. The bridge had originally been intended to be ready by December 2016 but construction work was delayed due to tough weather conditions.
May 31, 2017 Read time: 1 min
The new Queensferry Crossing, seen here at an earlier stage of construction, was originally intended to open to traffic in late 2016 but tough weather conditions delayed the opening
If good weather conditions continue then Scotland’s new Queensferry Crossing should open to traffic between July and August of this year. The bridge had originally been intended to be ready by December 2016 but construction work was delayed due to tough weather conditions. However in recent months the weather has been less challenging and has allowed work to continue.


The £1.35 billion project to replace the Forth Road Bridge has been required due to heavy wear and tear the existing structure has suffered from carrying significantly more and heavier traffic than it was designed for. There have also been concerns over corrosion in the main cables of the existing suspension bridge, although further corrosion was halted by the introduction of a novel de-humidification process.

Opening the new Queensferry Crossing will allow the existing Forth Road Bridge to be used as a public transport corridor for buses and taxis. There are also possible plans for the existing bridge to carry trams in the future.

Related Content

  • Bridge savings in Scotland to fund road improvements
    August 27, 2014
    The project to construct the new Forth Crossing close to Scottish capital Edinburgh is looking extremely positive, with cost savings envisaged for the bridge. The Queensferry Crossing scheme now looks to require slightly less funding than had been originally expected when the plans were unveiled in 2011, due in part to tight controls over spending. The bridge costs had been budgeted at close to €2 billion (£1.6 billion) initially but the project now looks likely to cost €1.81 billion (£1.45 billion). The sa
  • Go-ahead for new Forth Road Bridge
    March 1, 2012
    Scottish MPs have voted overwhelmingly in favour of a replacement for the Forth Road Bridge that will protect a vital link in the strategic transport network.
  • Mini-bridge aids Forth repairs
    July 17, 2012
    An engineering "first" means that rehabilitation work on a vital Scottish bridge built over 40 years ago can be carried out smoothly A new report to the Forth Estuary Transport Authority (FETA) in Scotland recommends appointing Balfour Beatty Civil Engineering of Edinburgh as 'preferred bidder' to carry out the scheduled replacement of the bridge's main expansion joints in 2009. However, the report to the bridge authority says the tender price of £13.7 million (US$21.3 million) is some £5 million ($7.8 mill
  • Italy’s horrific bridge collapse is a sign of a wider problem
    January 7, 2019
    The shocking collapse of a major highway bridge in the Italian city of Genoa has highlighted a major problem with regard to poor infrastructure condition in the country. Causing multiple fatalities, the cable-stayed Morandi Bridge suffered a spectacular failure of a central support. Homes have had to be evacuated and it seems likely that the bridge, opened in 1967, will now have to be demolished. However, warnings had been given. The unusual bridge design, with its thin deck and reinforced concrete stays