widget/exchange-29
widget/exchange-30widget/exchange-33
widget/exchange-31

News / SIC bridge costs reach over £7.2 million

THE FULL cost of the aborted Bressay bridge project to Shetland Islands Council is more than £7 million, it has emerged.

This week the council settled a legal dispute with Lerwick Port Authority over their plans to build a bridge across Lerwick harbour for £4,825,727.

The payment avoids the need for the port to take the council to court over an interim interdict taken out in August 2005 preventing the port from dredging the harbour’s north mouth.

The court order was obtained using emergency powers without consulting the full council just four days before the £6 million contract was due to commence.

Both sides said they were keen to avoid the reputational damage that would have been caused to Shetland had their dispute been dragged through the courts.

On Wednesday it emerged that the council had already spent almost £2.3 million on the Bressay bridge project prior to the settlement being reached.

offset-carousel/post-mobile/0

These extra costs included almost £800,000 spent on external consultants, more than £400,000 spent on external lawyers, more than £450,000 on paying council staff to deal with the bridge project and almost £500,000 on works contract costs.

On Monday councillors met in private where they voted against conducting an internal investigation into why so much money was wasted on a project that never saw the light of day.

Chief executive Alistair Buchan said that the organisation would take “corporate responsibility” for what happened.

He added that the way the council had been reorganised over the past year would make it highly unlikely to ever happen again.

However Lerwick South member Jonathan Wills has joined MSP Tavish Scott calling for a full investigation into how so much money was spent on a project that never saw the light of day.

Lerwick Port Authority has since proceeded with its dredging project and the council has abandoned all plans for building a bridge to Bressay.

Become a member of Shetland News

 

Instead the authority has embarked on a long term strategy to raise £300 million to build tunnels to the four main inhabited islands – Bressay, Whalsay, Yell and Unst.

A cost breakdown:

Works contract costs: £489,795.05
Other operating costs: £50,658.72
Travel & subsistence costs: £43,622.07
External/professional fees: £798,254.50
External legal fees: £409,410.51
SIC officer time: £456,154.34 

Become a member of Shetland News

Shetland News is asking its many readers to consider paying for membership to get additional features and services: -

  • Remove non-local ads;
  • Bookmark posts to read later;
  • Exclusive curated weekly newsletter;
  • Hide membership messages;
  • Comments open for discussion.

If you appreciate what we do and feel strongly about impartial local journalism, then please become a member of Shetland News by either making a single payment, or setting up a monthly, quarterly or yearly subscription.

 
Categories
widget/pd_widget-6widget/pd_widget-7widget/exchange-53widget/exchange-54widget/pd_widget-8widget/exchange-55widget/pd_widget-9widget/exchange-56

Newsletters

Subscribe to a selection of different newsletters from Shetland News, varying from breaking news delivered on the minute, to a weekly round-up of the opinion posts. All delivered straight to your inbox.

Daily Briefing Newsletter Weekly Highlights Newsletter Opinion Newsletter Life in Shetland Newsletter

JavaScript Required

We're sorry, but Shetland News isn't fully functional without JavaScript enabled.
Head over to the help page for instructions on how to enable JavaScript on your browser.

Your Privacy

We use cookies on our site to improve your experience.
By using our service, you agree to our Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy.

Browser is out-of-date

Shetland News isn't fully functional with this version of .
Head over to the help page for instructions on updating your browser for more security, improved speed and the best overall experience on this site.

Interested in Notifications?

Get notifications from Shetland News for important and breaking news.
You can unsubscribe at any time.

Have you considered becoming a member of Shetland News?

If you appreciate what we do and feel strongly about impartial local journalism, then please consider paying for membership and get the following features and services: -

  • Remove non-local ads;
  • Bookmark posts to read later;
  • Exclusive curated weekly newsletter;
  • Hide membership messages;
  • Comments open for discussion.