£3.5m contract awarded for Road Bridge investigations

BOSSES have awarded a £3.5 million contract to carry out investigations of the Forth Road Bridge's main cable anchorages.

The anchorages are concrete-filled tunnels bored into the rock on either shore, where the bridge's main suspension cables are attached to the ground.

Concerns have been raised about the possibility of corrosion in the steel strands which hold the concrete in the tunnels together.

Barry Colford, chief engineer and bridgemaster, said: "This is a very important investigation into what are critical components of the suspension bridge.

"I would stress that there is no external evidence of any problem, but it is our responsibility as a bridge authority to inspect every part of the structure in order to ensure there are no hidden issues."