Forth Road Bridge will close to motor traffic for four days for maintenance

The bridge will be closed to traffic for four days in July

From Monday 20 July through until the end of Friday 24 July the Forth Road Bridge will be shut to motor traffic however the east footpath will remain open to cyclists and pedestrians throughout the works.

Buses and taxis that would normally use the Forth Road Bridge will be diverted via the Queensferry Crossing.

These works form part of a project to refurbish and upgrade the under-deck gantries, which provide safe working access for maintenance staff along the length of the Forth Road Bridge’s suspended span. The two existing gantries will be refurbished and reinstalled and one new additional gantry is being fabricated.

The lowering of the gantries needs to be carried out at high tide and is highly weather dependent. Two cranes positioned on the main carriageways of the bridge will lower the gantries onto barges in the Firth of Forth below, from where they will be transported to dock in Burntisland. Some contingency has been built into the programme, however the works may be rescheduled if conditions are not favourable.

The safety of workers remains a top priority during this essential maintenance project. Physical distancing protocols, in line with Scottish Government guidance, will be in place to ensure all on-site personnel remain safe throughout the duration of the project. Thorough risk assessments will be carried out and cleansing stations will be implemented on site.

Transport Scotland and Amey are carrying out the works as they fully recognise the importance of a safe and reliable trunk road network, particularly during the Covid-19 outbreak, and it is vital that essential maintenance works are carried out in order to maintain the integrity and safety of these routes. A number of maintenance projects have been identified as essential and will be prioritised over the coming weeks.

This scheme has been planned in consultation with Transport Scotland and Traffic Scotland and real-time journey information can be obtained by visiting www.trafficscotland.org or on their Twitter @TrafficScotland.