The eastern abutment of the original Bleaton Hallet Bridge was washed away by Storm Frank in December 2015. This has resulted in the C446, which connects Alyth and the A93 towards Glenshee, being unusable for drivers, forcing them to take an 18-mile detour.
The new £1m bridge will be constructed using a single-span galvanised steel structure and has been designed to allow all road traffic to cross, with no weight restrictions.
The new bridge is expected to be open before the end of the year.
The site team will be working around a four-metre vertical face on the east embankment to construct new abutments, pouring 100 cubic metres of concrete. The design also includes improvements to drainage to defend the bridge from severe weather damage in the future.
Morgan Sindall was selected after winning a competitive tendering process. The company delivered a presentation about the Ruthven Road Bridge on the outskirts of Kingussie in the Cairngorms National Park as a model for the new bridge.
Morgan Sindall area director Robert Ogg said: “The C446 road provides a vital link between Alyth and the A93 to Glenshee and the local communities come to depend on the infrastructure network so heavily, often without noticing how vulnerable it can be. We are acutely aware of this reliance and are proud to be designing and building a new bridge to restore this critical access; our message to the many people who would usually use this route is that the end is in sight.”
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