Garden Bridge construction contract signed

The Garden Bridge Trust has announced that it has signed a construction contract with the joint venture of Bouygues Travaux Publics and Cimolai SpA.

Bouygues has recently leased office space at Becket House in Lambeth Palace Road but Lambeth Council has rejected the firm's application to install an illuminated logo on the side of the building.

"The Garden Bridge is a reality," said Lord Davies, chairman of the Garden Bridge Trust.

"We are on course with our fundraising targets, we are meeting the requirements of our planning conditions.

"We have huge public support for the project and we look forward to working with Bouygues TP and Cimolai and all our partners to make this a special place to be enjoyed by Londoners and visitors in the heart of the city for years to come."

The trust intends to start work this summer, but has not yet discharged all the pre-commencement conditions attached to its planning permission and does not have a lease for the land it requires on the South Bank.

The trust is still £30 million short of its £175 million fundraising target. £60 million is coming from the public purse.

• Boris Johnson will face more questions about the Garden Bridge at his final Mayor's Question Time session at City Hall on Wednesday.