THE opening of Sunderland’s new bridge across the River Wear – Northern Spire – is getting closer after a long and challenging winter.

Finishing works on the cable-stayed bridge, which boasts a 105m-high central A-frame pylon, are underway with it expected to be open to traffic early in summer.

It was hoped Northern Spire would have been complete by May or June, but the long, harsh winter, which resulted in cold, wet and windy weather right up to the end of April, meant that work during the first four months of the year did not progress as quickly as expected.

Sunderland City Council leader, Councillor Graeme Miller, said: “Work on Northern Spire is nearing completion and the opening is now within sight.

“It was a very long winter and the poor weather that dominated the first four months of the year meant the contractors were unable to get on with some of the final aspects of the project.

“Painting of the pylon requires suitable weather conditions, particularly when painting at height, and we had really poor weather for some time. Inevitably, that slowed them down.”

He added: “Given the enormity of the structure and the methodology involved in constructing it, I think the project team has done a tremendous job and we are delighted to be now looking towards completion.”

Designed to last at least 120 years, Northern Spire will link Castletown to the north of the river with Pallion in the south and is part of a wider plan to improve the road network, between the A19 and the Port of Sunderland and the city centre.

Costing £117.6m, funding has been jointly provided by the Government, which contributed £82.5m, and Sunderland City Council, which contributed £35.1m. The project is due to be delivered on budget.

It is Phase 2 of the Sunderland Strategic Transport Corridor, which aims to improve links between the A19 and Sunderland City Centre and the Port of Sunderland. Phase 3 of the scheme has been granted planning permission and will run from Woodbine Terrace in Pallion, where the Northern Spire phase ends, onto the city centre, where Phase 1 along St Mary’s has already been completed.

The new dual carriageway delivered within Phase 3 will go under the Queen Alexandra Bridge, through Deptford, and will link into St Mary’s Boulevard, next to the Vaux site, opening up more development sites and opportunities along the river.

Work on the new road will begin next year and is expected to be finished and open to traffic in 2021.