Queensferry Crossing congestion due to £1.3bn bridge’s ‘novelty’, says minister

● Keith Brown rejects call to open Forth Road Bridge to traffic

Continuing rush-hour congestion on the new Queensferry Crossing will subside when the bridge becomes “less of a novelty”, the infrastructure secretary has claimed as he rejected calls for the Forth Road Bridge to reopen to traffic.

Keith Brown was forced to defend the £1.3 billion project after Liberal Democrat MSP Alex Cole-hamilton said the old bridge over the Forth should be temporarily reopened to cars to ease congestion.

Queues of traffic have built up on the Queensferry Crossing in both directions on most days since it opened to the public, with transport authorities initially blaming “bridge tourism”.

Members of the public have taken to social media to complain and senior figures at the RAC also said it would be “sensible”tore-opentheforth Road Bridge to traffic.

Mr Brown said many drivers were still familiarising themselves with the bridge, which currently has a 40mph speed limit, adding that the problem had been exacerbated by people wanting to experience the crossing for the first time.

“We’ve never said this is only down to sightseers,” he said. “But even as recently as yesterday we had groups of vehicles travelling across the new Queensferry Crossing to have a look at it, quite naturally, then immediately turning round at the junction on the other side and going back again. That’s to be expected

0 Traffic delays over the Queensferry Crossing have been blamed on its novelty to drivers but the government has rejected calls to reopen the Forth Road Bridge and it’s perfectly legitimate for people to do that, but that has produced some short-term pressures.”

The problems may continue for up to six weeks while the road approaching the north side of the Forth Road Bridge is remodelled. The old crossing will then open to buses and public transport, with the speed limit on the new bridge increased to 70mph.

Mr Brown said he hoped the remodelling work would be completed within four weeks. He also highlighted other inibridges

NICK LYES

tiatives to cut congestion, such as improving gantry signs and creating a “slicker” merging system.

Mr Cole-hamilton said the ongoing delays were “having a material impact on people’s livelihood”, claiming that some commuters were losing up to half a day of work.

“If there is a material problem with the road layout of the bridge we have a release valve in the form of the Forth Road Bridge,” the MSP for Edinburgh West said.

Writing on Facebook, commuter Frazer Horswell said the Queensferry Crossing should have been built to accommodate three lanes of traffic in each direction. “I have never experienced such bad delays in my three odd years of crossing the bridge six days a week,” he said.

Mr Brown added: “What we currently have is the same capacity as before – one bridge opened, 40mph, average speed cameras. I know it can be extremely frustrating but we have to get to the stage of being able to open both and thereby alleviate the some of the pressure that is currently being felt.”

RAC roads policy spokesman Nick Lyes said: “Re-opening the old bridge seems like a sensible solution if it is practical to do as it will increase overall capacity. Transport Scotland also plan to increase the speed limit from 40mph to 70mph. Clearly, neither action can come soon enough for the thousands of motorists that use the crossing every day.”

“Re-opening the old bridge seems like a sensible solution if it is practical to do as it will increase overall capacity”

RAC roads policy spokesman