A CONTROVERSIAL new bridge over the River Clyde is a step closer to reality.

Plans have been lodged with Glasgow City Council for the pedestrian link - dubbed the "squiggly bridge" - connecting the Broomielaw to Tradeston.

An earlier version of the plan was scrapped when costs passed the £60million mark.

Supporters of the development have claimed it will be "world-class" and a classic feature of the £33million regeneration of the area.

But opponents have questioned the need for another Clyde crossing - there are already 20 bridges between Dalmarnock and the SECC site.

The £3.65m bridge, which has yet to be officially named, is expected to get the go-ahead this summer and be completed by May 2008.

It has been dubbed the "squiggly bridge" because of its unusual design, just as the Clyde Arc further down river near the SECC was nicknamed the "squinty bridge".

Extensive work on both banks of the Clyde near the site of the Broomielaw-Tradeston crossing have been under-way for several weeks.

The bridge has been designed by Scandinavian architects Dissing and Weitling.

The double curve is intended to create a wave-like structure.

Construction of the bridge will be carried out by Edmund Nuttall Ltd, the same firm which built the Clyde Arc.

The council was forced to scrap the original plans drawn up by architect Richard Rogers, the man behind London's Millennium Dome, because of spiralling costs.

The cost of the entire project - including reinforcing the quay wall, providing access roads, drainage, and ground works - has now been capped at £33m.

Details of the planning application can be examined at the council offices at 229 George Street. Objectors have 21 days to make representations.