Queensferry closures can’t be allowed to continue with the economy struggling

Here we go again. That was my reaction on Friday morning, when emails started to flood into my inbox from angry constituents in Fife, alerting me to the fact that the Queensferry Crossing had been closed due to the risk of falling ice.

Although the bridge reopened later in the morning, massive transpor t disruption was caused, with huge congestion and tailbacks for vehicles tr ying to access the alternative route via the Kincardine Bridge.

This is not, of course, the first time that we have seen the Queensferr y Crossing close due to this problem. What is par ticularly concerning is that we are only just at the ver y star t of winter and we have already seen one closure, and constituents writing to me are asking how many more times this is likely to happen over coming weeks and months.

The cost of these closures to the East of S cotland economy, not to mention the disruption and distress caused to individuals, is immense. And we should not forget that this was, according to the engineers, “the bridge that would never have to close”.

I attended various meetings last year with Transpor t S cotland and their contractors to discuss the problem with ice forming on the bridge cables. It seems extraordinar y now that when the bridge was designed this issue with ice was a known problem, but it was deemed that climatic conditions on the For th were such that the probabilit y of it occurring here was so low that it could be disre - garded. Well, they ken noo.

S o what can be done? There are various potential solutions that could be retrofitted to the bridge, including looking at heating the cables to prevent ice build-up, or the installation of collars to slide down the cables to clear ice accumulations, as has been developed for the Por t Mann Bridge in Vancouver, which experienced similar problems.

An alternative approach is to fit steel mesh to the outside of the bridge cables which would help them retain the ice for longer. The ice would then melt and fall as harmless drops of water, rather than as large slabs or shards which present a risk to vehicles.

None of these solutions will be simple or cheap to implement. The Queensferr y Crossing has more than 70 km of cables which would have to be treated, and the expense would be considerable. It seems extraordinar y that here we have a brand-new bridge, hailed at the time of its construction as a “world-leading design”, and yet it is simply not fit for purpose and requires extensive remedial work.

Whatever solution is found, the S cottish Government has to get on and implement it as quickly as possible. In the meantime, they have to consider what use can be made of the existing For th Road Bridge as a potential bypass route in the event of future Queensferr y Crossing closures.

We simply cannot see a repeat, on a regular basis, of the scenes we saw on Friday morning, and at points last winter. The S cottish economy is already suffering enough due to the impact of Covid. To exacerbate these difficulties because of government incompe - tence would be simply unforgivable.

Murdo Fraser is a Conservative MSP for Mid-scotland and Fife