Forth Road Bridge Closure: Plea To Use Buses

Fife Council is asking more commuters to Edinburgh to use the buses.

The UK Government has announced a temporary relaxation of HGV drivers' hours, to help cope with the Forth Road Bridge closure.

The relaxation is in place until January 6th, and means lorry drivers will be allowed to stay behind the wheel for 11 hours, rather than 9.

The Freight Transport Association is welcoming the move, saying the knock on delays will affect the rest of the UK, as well as the East of Scotland.

Meanwhile opposition parties in the Scottish Parliament have called for an independent inquiry into the closure of the Bridge.

Labour and the Conservatives say key questions need to be answered.

This was after the Transport Minister told MSPs maintenance on the bridge hadn't been cut.

Transport Scotland say a strengthening programme that was cancelled in 2010 is not related to the steel fault which was found last week.

Fife Council urging more people to use the extra buses for commuting.

Council Leader David Ross said: “Fife Council’s role at this time is to support the Scottish Government who are leading the national response to the closure of the Forth Road Bridge. We’re doing all we can to help spread the information, which is coordinated by Transport Scotland, and to mitigate the impact of the travel arrangements that have been put in place for Fife’s residents and businesses.

“Of course the bridge closure will continue to have a major impact on local road users in West Fife and on commuters and businesses across the Kingdom and beyond. We’ve cleared all the roadworks from the area and every effort is being made to keep as many routes open as possible across the region.

“While we understand that not everyone on the roads is commuting to Edinburgh, congestion could be considerably eased if everyone who was able to, switched to a bus. There is lots of capacity on the extra bus services being run by Stagecoach and, because of the prioritised route on the A985, they’re reaching Edinburgh in around 1 hour 30 minutes from the Ferrytoll and Halbeath park & ride facilities. And there’s plenty of space to park in these car parks.

“Frequent buses are now running between Halbeath, Ferrytoll and Inverkeithing train station. There’s no charge between Ferrytoll and Inverkeithing. Scotrail has also put on extra train services but rail stations are, understandably, very busy.

“Other council services are largely unaffected. We’ve made some minor changes to a couple of school bus services, which parents have been informed of, but I’m pleased to report that schools and social care services are operating normally.

“Bin collection routes are being reorganised to avoid pressure points at peak times. So we’re asking people to make sure their bins are on the kerb before 6am and left out until 9pm, if necessary, on normal collection days.

“The Scottish Government is monitoring the impact on local businesses and Fife Council has a representative on the coordination group.

“We will continue to work with partners to monitor what’s happening, review plans and keep people informed.”

Transport Scotland has set up dedicated public information lines:

- 0800 247 1189 for A985 enquiries

- 0800 042 0188 general enquiries (Amey Call Centre)

- Or email - A985restrictions@amey.co.uk