Network Rail has started the selection process to find a contractor for designing and building the new Forth Bridge Experience.
Partners are being asked to submit their interest before Network Rail produces a shortlist to tender for the project later this Summer.
The main contractor is expected to be appointed by the end of 2020, with work beginning in 2021.
Plans for the Forth Bridge visitor centre and bridge walk was awarded planning permission from City of Edinburgh Council earlier in 2020.
Plans to create a new hub at the iconic structure are showcased by Network Rail where the public will be able to access the bridge and its outstanding views.
Groups of up to 15 people will put on safety harnesses before being led out onto the bridge's south cantilever.
Each tour is expected to last around two and a half hours. It is also expected that the bridge walk could attract 85,000 visitors a year, bringing benefits to the local economy and would create around 40 jobs.
Other plans to create visitor facilities at the north end of the bridge are also under development.
Alan Ross, Network Rail Scotland's director of engineering and asset management, said: “The bridge walk experience will offer the public a unique chance to explore this world-famous structure and bring a real economic boost to the local economy.
“Appointing a main contractor to help us deliver this project will be a major milestone in creating this new attraction.
“This will be a challenging and exciting project for any company to work on and we look forward to working with the wider construction industry to develop a shortlist to tender.”
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Wonderful to see how the Forth Bridge can be used not just a iconic railway bridge but also a tourist attraction and landmark that it was built for trains to cross over the River Forth from North of Scotland to Edinburgh.