Petition launched to name Govan to Partick bridge after Sir Billy Connolly

Work is currently under way on the £29.5m Govan to Partick bridge, amid calls to name it the Big Yin Bridge.

More than 600 people have already signed the Change.org petition which urges Glasgow City Council to consider the move.

Last November Glasgow City Council awarded a contract to build a new footbridge between Pointhouse Quay in Partick and Water Row in Govan, due to be completed by 2023.

Work on the Govan to Partick bridge will be completed next year.

The petition said: "With his formative years spent in Stewartville Street and at St Peter's Primary north of the river before attending St Gerard's Secondary (commuting from Drumchapel no less) and becoming an apprentice at Alexander Stephens south of the river, there can surely be no more fitting name than entitling this bridge after the legendary Sir Billy Connolly.

"With the Big Yin suffering from Parkinson's Disease, such a tribute within his lifetime linking two areas of the city so indelibly connected with one of Glasgow's (and Scotland's) most beloved sons would be no more than the great figure deserves."

Farrans (Construction) Limited were awarded the contract which is part of the Glasgow City Region City Deal.

The £29.5million project includes the construction of a new pedestrian/cycle bridge over the River Clyde between Water Row in Govan and Pointhouse Quay in Partick, a connection that will re-establish the historic link between the two areas.

The bridge will be economically, environmentally and socially important as it will create a link between communities, visitor attractions and institutions of national economic importance, and is a key part of the active travel route between the University of Glasgow's campus at Gilmorehill and the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital.

MFL - contacting Glasgow City Council for comment