Tweet
14 December 2010
Last updated at 19:40 ET
Construction of the new Forth road bridge will get under way next year, under plans to be approved by MSPs.
The Scottish Parliament is expected to pass the legislation needed to build the £2bn crossing, due for completion by 2016.
Ministers said the condition of the existing bridge, linking Edinburgh and Fife, was deteriorating.
The project has come under attack from environmental campaigners and there has been a row over how to fund it.
The bridge, to be paid for by the Scottish government's capital budget, was brought forward in the wake of concerns about the condition of the existing crossing, now more than 40 years old.
The replacement link, to be given the green light under the Forth Crossing Bill, has been described by the Holyrood government as the biggest Scottish infrastructure project for a generation, and vital to the economy.
The existing road bridge would be used for public transport and cyclists.
The campaign group Forthright Alliance has argued the new bridge - to cost between £1.7bn and £2.3bn - is not a "justifiable or credible" use of public money.
Scottish ministers clashed with the previous Westminster government over borrowing from future budgets to pay for the crossing.
The SNP said the project would be delivered on time and on budget.
Powered by WizardRSS | Work At Home Jobs
The Scottish Parliament is expected to pass the legislation needed to build the £2bn crossing, due for completion by 2016.
Ministers said the condition of the existing bridge, linking Edinburgh and Fife, was deteriorating.
The project has come under attack from environmental campaigners and there has been a row over how to fund it.
The bridge, to be paid for by the Scottish government's capital budget, was brought forward in the wake of concerns about the condition of the existing crossing, now more than 40 years old.
The replacement link, to be given the green light under the Forth Crossing Bill, has been described by the Holyrood government as the biggest Scottish infrastructure project for a generation, and vital to the economy.
The existing road bridge would be used for public transport and cyclists.
The campaign group Forthright Alliance has argued the new bridge - to cost between £1.7bn and £2.3bn - is not a "justifiable or credible" use of public money.
Scottish ministers clashed with the previous Westminster government over borrowing from future budgets to pay for the crossing.
The SNP said the project would be delivered on time and on budget.
Powered by WizardRSS | Work At Home Jobs