Work to bolster foundations on Cromarty Bridge 'progressing well', says Bear Scotland
Register for free to read more of the latest local news. It's easy and will only take a moment.
Teams are on track to finish maintenance work at the Cromarty Bridge next month.
Bear Scotland began work in February to instal rock armour around six of the bridge’s pier foundations, with around 6000 tonnes of rock to be placed in total, to protect them from being scoured away by the sea.
Using an excavator on top of a barge anchored to the seabed it is hoped the work will protect the vital crossing from tidal erosion for years to come.
A spokesperson for Bear Scotland said: “The ongoing £1.3 million scour protection project for the Cromarty Bridge is progressing well, with teams on track to finish the project next month.
“The work involves installing around 6000 tonnes of rock armour on the seabed around six piers of the structure, which carries the A9 across the Cromarty Firth.
“This will help protect the piers from level changes in the seabed and ensure the piles that support the piers are not exposed by the tides.
“So far, about 75 per cent of the rock armour has been installed in the project.
“The rock installation is being carried out using an excavator on a floating barge which is anchored to the seabed, ensuring the work can be carried out with minimum disruption to traffic on the A9.”
They added: “While most of the work is being carried out beneath the bridge deck, with minimal impact to road users, a 30mph speed limit is in place at the northern end of the structure to provide a safe environment for the workforce and road users near the site compound, and we thank all road users for driving safely through the project.”
Before work began Bear said operations would be closely supervised by its environmental team in order to prevent the project from having an adverse impact on the firth’s bird, mammal and fish species.
