Nearly quarter of a million journeys over the new Don crossing
15 July 2016
Nearly a quarter of a million vehicle, cyclist and pedestrian journeys have been made on the new £22.3million crossing over the River Don since it opened a month ago, Aberdeen City Council figures today revealed.
The total figure includes 240,772 vehicle journeys, 2,798 cycling trips, and 4,272 pedestrian treks for the crossing which has involved the construction of two major bridges, 2.4km of new roads, and new cycleways and pavements.
The total volume of vehicles south-bound was 138,844, and north-bound was 101,928, with an average per day total of 7,767.
The figures showed the busiest day of the week for cyclists is a Monday, and there were an average of 87 cycling trips per day with commuter peaks both south-bound (going in towards the city) in the morning and north-bound (out from the city) late afternoon.
The average daily number of pedestrians is 134, with a Thursday the busiest day, with peaks at the same commuter times during the week, and a particular peak at about 2pm on a Sunday.
Aberdeen City Council Leader Jenny Laing, who opened the bridge on 9 June cheered on by hundreds of pupils from two local primary schools, said: “I am pleased to see so many people are making use of the crossing which transforms getting around the north of the city, particularly for people who live in the areas nearby.
“It is also good the crossing is being used regularly by cycling and pedestrians for their daily commute, and also that people are using it for relaxing at the weekend by going for a stroll or cycle by the river with all the wildlife you can see from the bridge or its surrounding paths.
“The new crossing is helping to alleviate congestion by taking traffic away from the other two main crossings at the Bridge of Don and Persley Bridge and I’m sure more people will have the benefit of it not just for their journey to work but also for leisure activities.”
The project is designed to connect with other major infrastructure projects which are designed to transform moving around the city including the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route (AWPR/B-T), the £19million Berryden Corridor, and the £426,000 A96 Dyce Park and Choose.
The new road created for the project links up to The Parkway and will connect directly as a major arterial link with the AWPR/B-T.
The new crossing over the River Don is part of £516million of capital investment over the next five years by Aberdeen City Council to help the city achieve the ambitions in the Regional Economic Strategy, Strategic Infrastructure Plan and recently-agreed City Region Deal – it’s also part of one of the biggest regeneration programmes of the city’s history involving new schools and cultural centres.
A separate official naming ceremony is to be held for the bridge at a later date – the pupils from the two local primary schools at Riverbank and Danestone overwhelmingly voted for Diamond Bridge, which is based on the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and Aberdeen’s historic ties with HMS Diamond.