Scottish transport minister says key bridge link to Edinburgh that was closed due to defect will reopen on Wednesday to all traffic but HGVs

The Forth Road Bridge is to reopen to cars and light vehicles on Wednesday morning, nearly two weeks earlier than forecast, after engineers made a quick, temporary repair to a split support truss.

Heavy goods vehicles will still be banned from crossing the bridge for at least six weeks, because the repair is too weak to carry their weight – a decision which has angered hauliers and distribution firms.

The bridge’s operating company, Amey, said the temporary repair – a steel splint fixed to the broken section – would allow the cars, vans and buses that make up 90% of the bridge’s traffic to return from Wednesday morning.

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Its emergency closure to all traffic on 3 December, after a 20mm crack was found in a support truss on its northern pier, caused chaos on roads in Fife and central Scotland. Tens of thousands of commuters and travellers were forced on to heavily crowded trains, relief buses and alternative roads.

MSPs are to carry out an inquiry into the bridge’s closure early in the new year after opposition parties said there was clear documentary evidence that the crisis was due to cost-cutting by the bridge’s previous publicly owned operating company.

Funding cuts led to the delay five years ago of upgrades that would have replaced the affected part, Scottish Labour has alleged. Derek Mackay, the Scottish transport minister, has furiously denied the claims, insisting the split was very recent and unforeseen.

The original target date for reopening the bridge was 4 January – the date when most office workers return to work after the Christmas and new year holiday. But ministers said this timescale included a contingency period in case severe weather prevented repairs from taking place.

Although HGVs and abnormal loads make up 9% of the traffic by volume, they account for 32% of the weight the 51-year-old bridge carries.

In a statement on Tuesday, Transport Scotland said its monitoring of the temporary repair showed that “the bridge can now be safely reopened to all traffic, except HGVs and abnormal loads. This means that the bridge will be open to over 90% of the traffic that uses it.

“Independent engineering experts have analysed the findings and agree with Amey’s assessment that loading the bridge with HGVs could result in stress to the truss end link. They agree the best way to mitigate against this risk is to exclude HGVs from using the bridge until the permanent repair is in place.

“This will take around six weeks to complete and, subject to favourable weather conditions and no further defects being identified, the bridge should reopen to HGVs in mid-February. Ministers and officials will now discuss with hauliers the operational support that can be offered to them during the period when they cannot access the bridge.”

Mackay said making the repairs in such a short timeframe had been an “unprecedented challenge. We can’t lose sight of the fact that many people have been inconvenienced by the closure. While that is deeply regrettable, I would like to thank the transport operators who pulled out all of the stops to put on extra services.”

He said the final, permanent repairs and additional work to other similar sections would be done at night. “With the temporary solution now in place, the remaining work to install the long term repair can safely proceed without the need for a full closure. The repairs will be carried out with overnight lane restrictions on the bridge.

“For the complex and detailed interim repair to have been completed in this timeframe is a tribute to the highly skilled and dedicated staff who have worked 24/7 since 3 December. Since the closure was put in place, weather conditions have been mainly favourable and the team have been able to complete the repair work in good time.”

The Freight Transport Association was unhappy about the longer delay for HGVs. Karen Dee, the FTA’s director of policy, said Nicola Sturgeon, the first minister, had reassured hauliers specifically that their ban on using the bridge would end by 4 January.

Sturgeon told Ruth Davidson, the Scottish Tory leader, on 10 December that reports that week that the bridge could remain closed to HGVs for much longer than other vehicles were unfounded. The first minister told Davidson: “The government’s absolute intention is to have the bridge open for people returning to work in the new year and for it to be open as normal to all vehicles that previously travelled over it. That is what we have said all along and it is what we continue to say.”

But extending the ban for HGVs until mid-February would mean substantial additional mileage costs, driving times and delivery delays because the diversion around the bridge is about 50 miles long. The FTA would press the Department for Transport to continue the relaxation of restriction on drivers’ hours, Dee said.

“The first minister offered reassurance that the bridge would reopen to all vehicles on 4 January so this is a devastating blow for our members,” Dee said. “The additional costs incurred by the 50-mile diversion are significant, especially when contracts have already been signed and there is no opportunity to recoup the money.”