Funding has been secured for a new road bridge which will link Inverness Campus with the north’s largest retail park.
Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) has committed £2.25million towards a project to build the new crossing at the northern edge of their developed site.
The bridge would allow public transport to cross the Inverness to Perth railway between the campus and Inverness Shopping Park.
Pedestians and cyclists will also be allowed to use the bridge.
It would be the final element of a link road built towards the north of the campus, which passes where the student accommodation blocks have been built.
The board of HIE has now approved a funding package for the project totalling £2.25million.
The funding package includes a £700,000 grant from transport charity Sustrans and £88,000 from Highland Council.
A spokesman for HIE said: “This is about enhancing the capacity for green travel to and from Inverness Campus, one of Scotland’s most ambitious projects.
“The Campus design has prioritised accessibility for public transport, pedestrians and cyclists. There is already a bridge and path for cyclists and pedestrians linking the south of the campus to the Inverness Retail and Business Park.
“The North Bridge will expand this access to link with the north end of the campus and provide access for buses.
“We expect the project to take 12 to 18 months to complete.”
The campus and retail park are already linked by a bridge over the railway for cyclists and pedestrians which was built in 2015 and enters the shopping park at the back of the Homebase store.
Establishing a road bridge at the north end of the campus was a planning condition established when the campus was granted permission in 2011.
The crossing has to be in place before 50,000 sq m of the Beechwood site is occupied.