[6] Eventually, in late 1923, the Council decided to build a bridge itself on a cost of £40,000 to £60,000 with a low height design made from timber that was 213m long, with a roadway 5.5m wide and room for one covered footpath, but no tram lines.

The amount of traffic using the bridge was higher than expected and the subsequent revenue from tolls providing a financial boon for the government.

At the Mosman end the slab and two column piers rest on concrete piles driven into the sands of the harbour bed at a depth of between 40 and 50 feet (12 and 15 m).

Grade-separated shared pedestrian footpaths and cycleways are located on the bridge's western (upriver) and eastern (downriver) sides.

The increased cost estimates to $115 million were deemed to be not justifiable by the Minister for Roads Eric Roozendaal and the five–year plan was abandoned.

David Barr, the member for Manly, claimed in 2002 that the latter two were too expensive with $200 million estimated for a high-level bridge, and $1 billion for the tunnel.

[12] In 2009 it was reported that the Labor Government was reviewing a proposal for a tunnel from Cammeray to The Spit, linked to a new, higher bridge that would be able to let boats through without the need to be opened.

[13] In 2014, Premier Mike Baird, also the member for Manly, announced plans to bypass Mosman and The Spit Bridge by constructing a $2–3 billion tunnel from Seaforth to Neutral Bay that would run underground beneath Military Road.

The tunnel, which is expected to take five years to build, will connect the Warringah Freeway from Cammeray and cross underneath Middle Harbour to meet up with the Burnt Bridge Creek deviation at Balgowlah.

[15][16] However, in June 2022, the NSW Government announced that the Beaches Link section of the project would be shelved indefinitely, due to market constraints and labour shortages.