Tourism operators will compete for the rights to take thrill-seekers up the 65-metre-high Matagarup Bridge after the Government today confirmed the experience would be green-lit upon completion.

Transport Minister Rita Saffioti hailed “another major milestone” in the $91.5 million Swan River Pedestrian Bridge construction as the first major segments arrived at Burswood from Civmec’s steel fabrication yards in Henderson.

About 50 similar components will arrive over coming weeks, with the project on track to meet its revised completion date in May.

The first steel component weighed 30 tonnes and was 19 metres long, giving an indication of the scale of the footbridge linking East Perth with Optus Stadium and the wider Burswood Peninsula.

“As you can see from the first segment, this will be a very big bridge,” Ms Saffioti said.

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Camera Icon The bridge to the new stadium is under construction at Burswood. Credit: Ian Munro/The West Australian

Bridge climbs as a tourism product, first mooted by Ms Saffioti in November, would become a reality after design modifications.

“For example there were a lot of stairs for continued maintenance so we have included as part of that project some further handrails and a viewing platform for the top to allow for those bridge climbs into the future,” she said.

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“So yes, it will be part of the project and we will be going out to the private sector once the project is completed.”

Dallas Keane, State operations manager of engineers York Civil, said the central arch and deck sections would be assembled in modules on the riverbank before being launched on barges to connect to the main structure.