£18m bridge over River Trent gets approval

The first bridge to built over the River Trent since the 1950s has been given approval Executive Board.

The project to build a new 85metre long pedestrian and cycle bridge over the River Trent between Trent Basin and Lady Bay will get a final go-ahead from the Department for Transport before contracts are signed and work can begin in the new year.

The bridge will be the flagship, and final project to come out of the City Council’s Transforming Cities Fund programme, which began in 2020 following a successful bid for over £160m of central Government funding for projects which encourage inter-city connectivity and lower carbon journeys.

Planning for the project has been underway since 2019. Since the project began the cost of bridge has ballooned from an initial £12m to £18m. The council says this is down factors outside of its control, including Covid, the war in Ukraine and periods of high inflation. The final construction costs will be confirmed by December.

The City Council intends to enter into contracts with the lead delivery partner Balfour Beatty in January with enabling works starting early in 2025.

Then, into the spring and summer, a warehouse used by Flo Skate park will be demolished to make way for the bridge sections to be brought to site and erected before being lifted into place during autumn 2025. The new bridge is expected to officially open in early 2026.

Nottingham City Council Leader and Executive Member for Strategic Regeneration, Transport and Communications, Councillor Neghat Khan said: “The new bridge will be the first built over the Trent in Nottingham for more than 60 years, creating a vital link between developing new communities and opening up new safer commuter and leisure routes, offering a huge boost to cyclists, pedestrians and runners as well as everyone in our city through improving air quality and congestion.”