Scotland’s world-renowned engineering marvel the Forth Railway Bridge could become a World Heritage Site.

It has been put forward to UNESCO (the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation) and the decision will be taken in 2015.

The Victorian bridge, which links Edinburgh with Fife, is already a listed structure but still carries more than 200 trains a day.

Network Rail owns and maintains the 1.5 mile-long bridge, Britain’s first major steel construction.

David Simpson of Network Rail Scotland said the nomination was a "tribute" to the thousands of men who had restored and maintained the bridge since it was first used in 1890.

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He said: "The Forth Bridge is one of the most recognisable bridges anywhere in the world and the most cherished Scottish structure of the Victorian era. The bridge has become a source of pride and a symbol of Scotland's resilience and ingenuity but we must never lose sight of the fact that it is first and foremost a working structure."

Cabinet Secretary for Culture and External Affairs Fiona Hyslop said: "This nomination has the potential to be a celebration of our country’s engineering ingenuity and pedigree and I wish the team working on it all the best."

The Forth Bridge, built by Glasgow engineer William Arrol, is the world’s first large-scale steel cantilever bridge. It comprises two girder spans of 1,710ft made up of three 351 ft high double-cantilevers, with a long approach viaduct on tall granite-faced piers at its south end. It used 54,000 tonnes of steel and about 6,500,000 rivets.

(NE)