BRIDGE FACTS

● At 2250 metres (1.4 miles), it’s one of the longest road bridges in Europe. between

● It took three1963 and years 1966.to build, its

● 360 peak men constructionworked on period,the bridgeand at aroundthe fabrication200 moreof materialswere involved off-site.in ● The main structure has 42 spans.

● The bridge carries an average of 26,000 vehicles each day.

● the A Newport50ft (15m) side tall and obeliska smaller stands oneat at the Dundee side.

● Aluminium was used in the construction of the crash barriers for the first time in Britain.

● The bridge has a gradient of 1:81, running from 9.75m (32ft) above sea level in Dundee to 38.1m (125ft) above sea level in Fife.

● Toll fees were a shilling (5p) for a motorbike without sidecar and half a crown (12½p) for cars and motorbikes with sidecars. Heavy vehicles were 10 shillings (50p).

● Bridge tolls were in place for 42 years, only being abolished in 2008.

● A gala day to celebrate the opening took place on August 20, 1966 and entertainment included a tattie howkers’ polka by the Newport Lifeboys, fancy dress parade, baby show and, bizarrely, an ankle competition.

● On the day the bridge opened, the Fifies, the ferry boat service to Newport, ended.

● Jif lemons were hung from a tree by the bridge by staff for a joke but become a talking point, with tour buses telling passengers it was the world’s most northerly lemon tree. Each winter, staff would wash them in preparation for the following summer.