Murdo Fraser MSP has described the lack of a long-term plan by the SNP Government to deal with the problem of ice falling from the cables of the Queensferry Crossing as “woeful.”
The Scottish Conservative politician recently raised the issue at Holyrood but fears his constituents in Fife and motorists in the east of Scotland, look set to face years of disruption if the Crossing has to close again.
Mr Fraser was told by Minister for Transport, Graeme Dey MSP, that various possible ideas to address the problem have been considered, including using the Forth Road Bridge as an alternative mode of transport for motorists if the Queensferry Crossing does have to close again due to falling ice from its cables.
Commenting, Mr Fraser, who represents the Mid Scotland and Fife region, said: “The lack of a long-term solution by the SNP Government to deal with this problem of ice falling from the cables of the Queensferry Crossing is basically woeful. I raised the concerns of many of my constituents in Fife, who want reassurance that we won’t see another winter of disruption caused by this problem.
“However, all I heard from the Minister for Transport was that there is no timetable for improvements and that the SNP Government has no idea when any proposed improvements will be done.”
Mr Fraser continued: “It was clear from the Minister for Transport’s answer to my question that there is still no long-term solution for this problem, so it looks like we are in for years of disruption. That is not good enough and I know many of my constituents will be rightly frustrated by this response.
“It is not good enough for the Minister for Transport to make facetious comments about not being able to predict the weather – all it takes is one night of freezing weather and we will have the likelihood of ice falling from the cables of the Queensferry Crossing and the subsequent closure of the bridge and inevitable disruption that will follow.”
Mr Fraser asked the Scottish Government what progress has been made to address the problem of ice falling from the cables of the Queensferry Crossing during a Portfolio session at Holyrood on Net Zero, Energy and Transport.