Sunderland Landmark A Bridge To Jobs

Sunderland's New Landmark Bridge

Sunderland's new landmark bridge will provide a major boost to the economy, says a city academic.

The Sunderland Echo revealed yesterday that Transport Minister Patrick McLoughlin had rubber-stamped the final proposals for the �120million project.

Dr Hamid Seddighi is a senior lecturer in Sunderland University�s Faculty of Business and Law and has studied the impact of the project. �I think this is very welcome news for Sunderland,� he said. �It is going to open up the doors to new companies and new growth. �In the short term it is going to create new employment opportunities, which is very welcome news.� The new bridge will improve access to the banks of the Wear around Pallion. Making the most of the riverside is a key part of the city�s economic master-plan, one which Dr Seddighi approves. �Sunderland, as a city, has to use all its natural resources effectively and efficiently as a way of bringing in new business and new industry,� he said. �I think the master-plan is right to focus on the river as a way of improving the environment for businesses.�