New aerial photos show progress on the construction of Great Yarmouth's £121m Herring Bridge.

The images, taken by aerial photographer Mike Page, show both leaves in the down position as engineers prepare for opening the bridge to road traffic.

A spokesman for Norfolk County Council said the leaves will be down or at various heights over coming weeks as part of the commissioning and finishing works.

Eastern Daily Press: Work on Great Yarmouth's Herring Bridge has been dogged by disruptions including an unexploded WW2 bomb. Work on Great Yarmouth's Herring Bridge has been dogged by disruptions including an unexploded WW2 bomb. (Image: Mike Page)

READ MORE: Has county's new £121m bridge contributed to floods on Norfolk Broads?

The bridge will remain closed to road traffic and pedestrians until sometime in 2024 - but the project passed a major milestone last week when it opened to river traffic.

There had been longstanding speculation - always denied by council bosses - that the two leaves did not align as closely as they should.

Construction of The Herring Bridge began in January 2021 and was estimated to take just over two years. 

Eastern Daily Press: Great Yarmouth's new £121m bridge is due to open next year. Great Yarmouth's new £121m bridge is due to open next year. (Image: Mike Page)

But the mammoth development, which had two prospective opening dates for March and the summer, stalled in February due to the discovery of an unexploded Second World War bomb and in July due to the presence of a vole burrow.

Critics have claimed the bridge has contributed to the recent flooding on the Broads by reducing the volume of water that can drain from the waterways.

Eastern Daily Press: The Herring Bridge in Great Yarmouth has opened to river traffic. The Herring Bridge in Great Yarmouth has opened to river traffic. (Image: Mike Page)

The abutments for the new bridge mean that the width of the Yare has been reduced by more than a third - from 89 metres to 55 metres - close to where it flows into the North Sea.

However, Norfolk County Council officials said unprecedented high tides and rainfall, with the failures of some pumps, were more likely to have caused the flooding.

Last month, Tony Mulholland, project director for contractors BAM Farrans Joint Venture, said: “We are in the final stages of preparing Herring Bridge for opening and we would like to thank the public for their continued patience and support."