This covered the bulk of the contract for WSP to carry out preliminary design work for the bridge clip-on over the Taieri River.
The State Highway 87 bridge attachment is a key component of a planned cycle trail between Mosgiel and Outram.
The grant was from the Dunedin Casino Charitable Trust and support for the trail has also come from the Mosgiel-Taieri Community Board, the Taieri Rotary Club and community fundraising.
Dunedin Tracks Network Trust member Sarah Davie-Nitis said the bridge would be crucial to the success of the off-road trail.
There was no public transport between Mosgiel and Outram and the trail would improve access to facilities such as Mosgiel’s Te Puna o Whakaehu swimming pool, she said.
The trust had been working with landowners, the Otago Regional Council concerning potential use of stopbanks and roading authorities NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi and the Dunedin City Council.
The longer-term plan is to continue the connection past Outram to Waihola, linking up with the extension to the Clutha Gold Cycle Trail.
WSP regional project director Chris Fox said the consultancy had been engaged by the trust to develop a preliminary design for the bridge and this would enable it to seek consents.
It was for a bridge clip-on structure that would accommodate cyclists and pedestrians, he said.
"We need to make sure that the existing bridge structure can support the additional load of the clip-on structure and its users without compromising the highway bridge or the safety of all users."
