New safer bridge over Clyde opens in Glasgow


The £1.5 million Polamdie footbridge beside Glasgow Green in the city's east end replaces its 60-year-old predecessor which was closed in 2015 when its condition became dangerous.
It is the fourth new span across the river in Glasgow to open in the last 12 years.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdThe bridge was opened by transport secretary Michael Matheson, who said the old one had meant a lot to him because he crossed it while cross-country running as a pupil at nearby St John Bosco Secondary School.


The 103m-long bridge features a curved wire parapet which is difficult to climb.
Its pointed wooden top rail is also designed to be awkward to sit or walk on.
White lighting embedded in the rail points downwards, illuminating the water, which would assist in a river rescue.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide Ad

Glasgow City Council hopes the bridge will encourage more walking and cycling by re-connecting riverside paths on the banks of the river, which are part of the national cycle network.
City convener for sustainability and carbon reduction Anna Richardson said: "It is a very important link in our walking and cycling network."
Funding included a "major" contribution from cycle path developers Sustrans from a Scottish Government grant.


Footbridges at the Cunnigar loop and Shawfield, further upstream, were opened four years ago, after the Tradeston "Squiggly Bridge" in the city centre in 2009 and the "Squinty Bridge" Clyde Arc near the SEC three years earlier.