Poll suggests identity crisis for iconic bridge

Failure to recognise Forth Bridge

A new survey has suggested Scotland’s Forth Bridge is having something of an identity crisis.

Almost half of Britons failed to identify the iconic landmark when shown an image of it, according to research from the National Railway Museum.

In a UK-wide poll of more than 2,000 people ahead of a week-long event celebrating British engineering, only 54% recognised the bridge.

One in seven thought it was either the Severn Bridge or the Tyne Bridge.

Recognition of the Forth Bridge – voted Scotland’s greatest man-made wonder in a VisitScotland poll earlier this month – was lowest in London (32%) and in Northern Ireland (46%).

More than nine-out-of-10 Scots (92%), on the other hand, correctly identified the 126-year-old cantilever rail bridge, which spans the Firth of Forth.

Tobias Lumb, head of public programmes at the National Railway Museum, said: “For centuries Britain has produced pioneering engineers that have revolutionised transport and other parts of our industrial heritage, so it’s a shame their achievements don’t appear to live in the public consciousness as much as they should.”

While 47% of Scots failed to recognise London’s Thames Barrier, two-thirds of those surveyed north of the border did recognise the bridge crossing Bridge Street in TV’s Eastenders.

And more people in Scotland could identify former X Factor finalist Stacey Solomon than inventor and engineer Sir James Dyson – 62% to 59%.

The survey was conducted ahead of ‘Future Engineers’.

This week-long series of activities and events at the National Railway Museum highlights the role played by engineers in our lives, and aims to encourage more young people to consider careers in engineering.

In new research, almost half of Britons failed to identify the Forth Bridge.

Inventor and engineer Sir James Dyson was identified by fewer people in Scotland then former X Factor finalist Stacey Solomon, according to a recent survey.