Bridge is probably unfeasible because of water depth – imagine how you’d engineer each pier.

Looking at oil production facilities it might be possible to implement each pier in the same way – look at the Draugen oil platform for example. You’d need to protect against accidental damage from shipping but again the oil industry have already solved this problem – the Hibernia platform can withstand contact with a six million ton lump of ice. The thing is, they cost. Lots. And even with say 1km span between piers you’d need thirty or so to make up the bridge. I’m assuming that the sea floor (apart from the Beaufort’s Dyke bit) is suitable to take several 200,000 tonne structures.

Other than that it’s either a distraction tactic from Cummings and Johnson or just one of the regular infrastructure reviews that occupy the time of various government departments.

A few moments thought suggest there is no way this is financially workable. After all the channel tunnel was a boderline case when it connects a market of 60M and 300M. So why anyone thinks a bridge/tunnel which is technically more difficult due to water depth but only connects markets of 5M and 3M is worth the cost beggars belief.

Cost £20Bn? Make that £30Bn at least after cost overruns and inflation. In 2014 the Scotland – NI ferries carried 400’000 vehicles.

https://www.transport.gov.scot/publication/scottish-transport-statistics-no-34-2015-edition/j415388-12/

Say the bridge increases that by 150% to 1 million. If you borrow £30Bn at 5% to build it that is £1500 per vehicle using it. Economics of the madhouse.

I’m not sure much of the England to Dublin traffic would divert. It’s 6 hours+ driving to get from Manchester to Port Patrick then NI to Dublin.

It won’t stop a few of Boris’ chums getting a few million out of our budgets talking about though….

It would make far more sense to build a canal suitable for naval vessels along the Scotland/England border.

And of course, a wall.

🙂

The official price tag for HS2 was set out in the 2015 budget and came in at just under £56bn.

However, the government estimate for the project has since almost doubled with the latest figure rising to £106bn – according to an official review leaked to the Financial Times in January 2020.

If you borrow £30Bn at 5%

Add a 0.

I can’t talk about the idiocy of this idea and the cretin that Blojo is, without breaking the swear filter into very small pieces and subsequently getting banned.

All I can say is that he knows it won’t happen, we know it won’t happen. It’s all to take up column inches and minutes on the news as a distraction piece.

I’m more interested in the thing we’re being distracted from.

Any ideas?

It’s unionist tub thumping keep the union together bollocks.

There’s no demand, hence the reason there used to be 4 ferries crossing the channel from here to norn iron, now there’s one.

There was some idiot on radio Scotia this morning wanting a tunnel from Kintyre, and 120 miles of railway, featuring a bridge over loch awe, to Glasgow. He was serious as well.

It won’t stop a few of Boris’ chums getting a few million out of our budgets talking about though….

^^This,a thousand times this.
The Garden bridge team must be wetting themselves.

HS2,an Irish sea bridge and blue passports,what a time to be alive.

Used to work as chief engineer on the ferries from Larne to cairnryan, you’d be surprised how much freight is being moved there. It’s a pleasant route, but when you look at all the infrastructure required and the current reliability of the service, a freight only bridge would be a huge advantage.

Not sure about the politics but looking at this from a technical perspective it should be totally feasible. Look at the Troll B oil and gas platform in the North Sea. Standing in 300m water depth so don’t see why a bridge would not be technically feasible.

Of course the expense is an issue but infrastructure projects like this are there for many years so costs can be amortised over many decades, so though the numbers are Eye watering my big, they are affordable. And the point of big infrastructure projects is they always stimulate the traffic and demand and trade and tourism between Scotland and NI will almost definitely be boosted and increase to the benefit of both countries.

I’m not sure it’s such a ridiculous proposition no matter how politically driven and cynical the intentions and timings of BoJo’s suggestion of it.

In a post brexit world wether you agree with brexit or not we have to make a success of it and have to think differently and be more bold and ambitious. I’d be surprised if a project such as this would be a ‘disaster’. what would China do? By now in China this project would have already been approved and construction started in all likelihood. It’s a bit of a ‘build it and they will come’ thing.

In a post brexit world wether you agree with brexit or not we have to make a success of it and have to think differently and be more bold and ambitious.

Bollox

Nothing we can do will stop it being an utter disaster and our obligation is to point this out at every turn.

build it and they will come’ thing.

But the Chinese did build a massive bridge (the worlds longest sea crossing) and nobody came!!

https://www.asiatimes.com/2019/10/article/underused-mega-bridge-hungry-for-traffic-as-competition-looms/

I’d actually be interested to know where the ferry traffic from Troon went. There was (still is but full of Irish timber destined for the sawmill across the road) a P&O cargo terminal and before that a Seacat before the services were scrapped. Dunno if the extra sea miles were the problem or something else.

But yeah, bridge is bonkers, usual pish.

There was some idiot on radio Scotia this morning wanting a tunnel from Kintyre, and 120 miles of railway, featuring a bridge over loch awe, to Glasgow. He was serious as well.

Probably the same breed of nutter that thinks a bridge to Cumbrae is a good idea. They’re everywhere.

I’m more interested in the thing we’re being distracted from.

Any ideas?

Oh look, a squirrel.

We are all being played here. Forget the Scotireland Bridge, look back at BoJo and wonder what he is upto.

Will it be a single track road?

Mmmm squirrels

I suspect they want to distract us from the talks and speeches in Brussells that show clealy that cakism is dead

Is the idea any more stupid than the bridge connecting Sweden with Denmark?

I was thinking on my ride to work this morning that a semi—submerged tunnel might work better – basically build a tube in sections that floats 100m below the surface – well away from passing ships etc but without the challenge of building 1000ft? bridge piers. As long as the design has the right natural buoyancy the main engineering challenge would be how to anchor the tube to the seabed enough to stop tidal movement.

If this would work all of the sections could be pre-fabbed, floated to site and then partially submerged – a bit like with the recent Tyne tunnel but not resting on the seabed.

yes its a lot more stupid. That denmark bridge carries a lot of traffic on a main route to several countries, its a direct route between centres of population, its shallow water

A bridge too far in Switzerland / Germany

http://www.engineersjournal.ie/2016/06/28/gmiscalculation-laufenburg-bridge/

“I will build a bridge between Scotland and Northern Ireland” says man who failed to build one between London and London: pic.twitter.com/IjalrULjQE

— Have I Got News For You (@haveigotnews) February 10, 2020

I’m not sure much of the England to Dublin traffic would divert. It’s 6 hours+ driving to get from Manchester to Port Patrick then NI to Dublin.

Its 4 and half hours from Glasgow to Belfast in terms of road and ferry combined

Glasgow to Campbelltown and Torr to Belfast … without time on a bridge in between is 5 hours.

Only take 5 years to build a tunnel, say British Tunnelling Society, (even though crossrail is years behind schedule)

Tunnelling heavyweight backs Irish Sea link

I’m sure it’s possible to build a bridge or a tunnel.

But, why?.

But, why?.

Oh look, a squirrel.

Same issue of New Civil engineer has another article about tunneling costs not being reduced. By same expert. He has me confused. “Cost going down” meme to get contract?

Tunnelling industry warned that it must increase productivity to reduce costs

cheddarchallenged

Subscriber

Is the idea any more stupid than the bridge connecting Sweden with Denmark?

I was thinking on my ride to work this morning that a semi—submerged tunnel might work better – basically build a tube in sections that floats 100m below the surface – well away from passing ships etc but without the challenge of building 1000ft? bridge piers. As long as the design has the right natural buoyancy the main engineering challenge would be how to anchor the tube to the seabed enough to stop tidal movement.

If this would work all of the sections could be pre-fabbed, floated to site and then partially submerged – a bit like with the recent Tyne tunnel but not resting on the seabed.

The Royal Navy would aim to torpedo that idea in no time

I take it the quoted costs (guesses) for the bridge don’t include upgrading the A76 and A77 to dual carriageway to cope with a doubling or trebling of traffic. So another few billion there. Chickenfeed.

A75 you mean.

Edit, sorry, that was awfy pedantic 🙄😂

I take it the quoted costs (guesses) for the bridge don’t include…

…Moving the Welcome to England and Welcome to Scotland signs closer so that my youngest cnnot be reminded of the day he asked ‘Are we in Wales now?’ as we crossed the border…

cheddarchallanged : basically build a tube in sections that floats 100m below the surface

Because…fishing boats, otherwise it’s a fantastic idea that Boris can utilise….look over there…..squirrel!

Will the customs and passport controls be in Ireland, Scotland or in the middle?

Cloud Cuckoo land – where the cash to pay for it and the demand is located

Will the customs and passport controls be in Ireland, Scotland or in the middle?

Schengen

Bless you!

It’s not coronavirus is it?

😱

Using the BoJo Garden Bridge Bridge Calculator (366m £53000000) not building the bridge would cost £6996000000 with the added bonus of no maintenance and retaining jobs on the ferry service.

Bridge is probably unfeasible because of water depth – imagine how you’d engineer each pier.

Floating structures are fairly commonplace. The problem would be most of them are engineered for ~50 year lifespans, bridge foundations tend to be a bit more permanent.

Because…fishing boats, otherwise it’s a fantastic idea that Boris can utilise….look over there…..squirrel!

Simple, just create an exclusion zone.

Works for everything from fiber optic cables, wind farms, firing ranges, shipping lanes, oil and gas platforms, munitions dumps, war graves, and those bits of the coast where burial at sea is allowed*.

*yes there are designated areas where you’re allowed to dump a body where the tide shouldn’t wash it up on a beach and the trawlers won’t get it.

Simple, just create an exclusion zone.

Yeah. I mean there’s no chance of anyone stuffing up navigation now, is there…?

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-highlands-islands-11605365

WE’re not talkng about the russian report though are we?