The Queensferry Passage is the narrows that provide the lowest bridging-point across the Firth of Forth. It was the setting for a ferry service that tradition dictates was established by St Margaret in the late 11th century. Today it is bridged by three contrasting structures – the cantilever Forth Bridge opened in 1890, the suspension Forth Road Bridge opened in 1964 and a second road bridge the cable-stayed Queensferry Crossing opened in 2017. Shipping continues to pass beneath to and from the naval base at Rosyth and the port of Grangemouth, and the location witnessed the surrender of the German imperial fleet in November 1918. The scene can be viewed from either shore, but the North Queensferry side has the more spacious prospect with its own attractions that include Scotland’s biggest aquarium Deep Sea World.
Now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Forth Rail Bridge, Britain’s first major steel structure, overarches the harbour. Its Fife cantilever is the only one on dry land. North Queensferry Station is looked after by the North Queensferry Heritage Trust, and its waiting room contains memorabilia about the Bridge and the community. Trains call four times an hour in each direction on the Fife Circle route from Edinburgh.
The opening of the Forth Road Bridge in September 1964 led to the closure of the Queensferry Passage. The ferries were making 40,000 trips a year and carrying 900,000 vehicles. The Bridge had 4M crossings in its first year increasing to an annual figure of approximately 24 M. Concern abouts its structural deterioration prompted replacement by the Queensferry Crossing, leaving the Road Bridge to carry only buses, taxis, cyclists and pedestrians. The 1.7 miles (2.7km) latest structure is the longest three-tower, cable-stayed bridge in the world and also by far the largest to feature cables which cross mid-span. This innovative design provides extra strength and stiffness, allowing the towers and the deck to be slenderer and more elegant.
North Queensferry Harbour, which is also known as St Margaret's Haven, is not defined by artificial construction, but instead comprises piers within St Margaret's Bay, on the N side of Queensferry Narrows or Queensferry Passage and to the of North Queensferry village . It is sheltered by the Long Craig rocks to the W and by the massive headland of Carlingnose Point to the E. The greater part of the harbour dries at Low Water, and a significant portion (around) on the E side of the Railway Pier has been infilled. Since the end of the vehicular ferry service the harbour has been used almost exclusively by leisure and recreational craft.
The world's smallest working light tower sits in North Queensferry was built in 1817 by Robert Stevenson. After careful restoration, the Harbour Light Tower has now reopened on North Queensferry town pier. Once again, you can climb the 24 stairs up to the lamp as was last done over 100 years ago. Discover how the light-keeper kept the lamp burning and how the unique signalling system worked. Become part of the tower's history by lighting the lamp and receiving a Certificate of Competence as an Honorary Keeper of the Light.

Photos John Yellowlees; Kim Traynor, CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

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