Myth: They paint the Forth Bridge (or Golden Gate etc) by painting it bank to bank and then start again
01/01/07 00:00 Filed in: Urban
Myth
Do they really paint the Forth
Bridge (or Golden Gate etc) by painting it bank to bank and then
start again?
Myth
The story applies to a number of the worlds largest bridges. But essentially the idea is that painters start at one side of the bridge and over a number of years make their way to the other side until they are completed. By which time its necessary to start painting all over again.
Reality
Its complete tosh. The painting of bridges is a very exact process and specific areas require more attention than others. The myth also takes no account of advances in paint technology. Most heavy duty paints last a decade or more and much of bridge maintenance relates to testing and so forth.
So just to clarify, no, bridge painters don't go from bank to bank with a big set of brushes to then start again.
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