A new report from the City of Edinburgh Council urges the Scottish goverment not to commit to a new Forth Road Bridge crossing until 2011/12, when better information on the condition of the existing bridge will be available.
The suspension bridge, built in 1964, is slated to be replaced by the Scottish Government in 2016 due to deterioration, in particular structural weaknesses caused by corroding cables on the road bridge. Forth Estuary Transport Authority (FETA) is currently treating the bridge's main suspension cables in a major dehumidification project
The Council report recommends that a strategy using the existing bridge as the sole crossing should be developed.
Cllr Gordon Mackenzie said: "In principal, I am not against Transport Scotland's proposed bill and accept the need for a fully functional Forth crossing. However, it is clear that we do not have to award a contract for two years or more. During that period, we need to progress the design and procurement process for a new bridge but, in parallel, put in place the associated transport strategy that will be required to make the new bridge work better than the current one."
"We must also use this time to develop alternative methods of maintaining the existing bridge so that if, as we all hope, the dehumidification work is successful, and shows that the bridge has a significantly longer lifespan, we can deploy the £2bn earmarked for the new crossing into other vital public transport projects around the country."
The report will be considered at the Transport, Infrastructure and Environment Committee next Tuesday, 22nd September, and, if approved, will support continued development of the new crossing, subject to it being part of an integrated approach to managing cross-Forth travel that does not materially increase traffic pressures in Edinburgh.
Cllr Mackenzie added: "We will be urging the Scottish Parliament to explore both the public transport strategy and the maintenance of the existing bridge as the bill progresses. This is a huge decision for our Parliament and the process must ensure that MSPs have the information, time and space to do justice to all of the issues."
The Scottish Government has been preparing for the eventuality that the replacement bridge will not be built, proposing a £10 million cashback guarantee for the project's successful bidder's tendering costs if the project does not come to fruition and £5m back to each of the failed tenderers.