A spadeful of brown soil marked a major milestone for Poole’s long-awaited Twin Sails Bridge.

The ceremonial piercing of the concrete on the site of the former Power Station at Hamworthy, demonstrated where the unique bridge should land in 20 months’ time.

“It’s been very difficult sometimes,” said Gordon Clark, chairman of Gifford, which designed the lifting bridge. “Today really marks the first steps in the final stage.

“There is no turning back now. We are constructing this bridge,” he told the mayor, Cllr Chris Bulteel, councillors and officers who gathered for the ceremony, some thought would never happen.

But with the government re-confirming as recently as last Thursday its £14.1m grant for the £37 million project, the iconic bridge is on its way to spanning the Back Water Channel.

“This will not just be an off-the-shelf bridge,” said council leader, Cllr Brian Leverett. “It’s an iconic and bespoke bridge for a very important town.”

He said the overlapping leaf bridge would be, “famous throughout the world”.

It is being built, much of it on site, by Hochtief (UK), whose managing director John Jackson said: “We are very proud to be associated with such an iconic project for the residents of Poole.”

He said: “We set out to win this project because of its interesting civil engineering nature. We are used to doing very complex and heavy structures.”

Work on the new mooring piles in the channel is due to begin in July, with the construction of the first support pier expected in August. Three more piers will be built through the autumn and winter before the first bridge span next year.

Barges will be used to float sections into place, avoiding the need for large cranes on site.