reduction in freight traffic today the number of
trains using the bridge is between 190 -200
a day. As a fireman on steam locomotives
crossing the bridge in strong winds I must admit
to a few sphincter tightening moments and an
unreasonable urge to hold on to a handrail when
at the back of your mind was the knowledge that
it was perfectly safe.
During construction firms were invited to tender
as suppliers of paint and the contract was won
by Craig and Rose of Leith who supplied the
paint until 2002. The painting area is estimated
to be 145 acres and 7,000 gallons of paint
are required to paint the bridge from end to
end. In the 1990s it was estimated that the
cost to British Rail of maintaining the Bridge
was £750,000 per annum. The Cambridge
International Dictionary of Idioms states: “If
repairing or improving something is like painting
the Forth Bridge, it takes such a long time that
by the time you are finished doing it you have to
start again”. The expression: “like painting the
Forth Bridge” for a never ending task is quite
erroneous, contrary to popular belief the bridge
is not painted from end to end but done over a
four to six year cycle, When British Rail owned
several companies to use the bridge image gone bye it provided a source of income for the
the bridge they employed a squad of 16 men as
for advertising. Probably the most famous maintenance squads.
painters and the ‘climbing season’ ran from April
to September. The present owners Network Rail
was the Barrs ‘Irn Bru’ advert which showed a
in 2002 awarded the maintenance contract to
picture of the bridge and the slogan: “Made in The uninhabited Island of Inchmickery in the
Balfour Beatty until 2009 at an estimated cost
Scotland from girders” but had to be dropped Forth to the east of the bridge has a unique
of £13 million a year, this figure was upwardly
under the trading standards’ rules that it was shape resembling a ship when viewed from
revised in 2008 to £180 million and the time
making false claims and that ‘Irn Bru’ was not the air. This was noticed during the First World
scale was expanded to 2012.
in fact made from melted girders and poured War and concrete buildings were constructed to
into a bottle. The bridge has also been in resemble the superstructure of a battleship. This
The work involves stripping the old paint back
many films including the Alfred Hitchcock 1939 fooled the German pilots who were en route
to the steel and applying three coats of a
thriller ‘The 39 Steps’ starring Robert Donat as to destroy the bridge and caused them to drop
new type of paint used on oil rigs and has an secret agent Richard Hannah and in the 1959 their bombs there instead.
estimated life span of twenty-five years. The remake. The tradition of throwing a coin over
maintenance costs are covered by allowing the bridge ‘for luck’ has faded now but in years Copyright Bob McCulloch 2009
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