Forth Road Bridge crossings approach 25m

TRAFFIC on the Forth Road Bridge has risen by 3.5 per cent over the last year, with more than 24,500,000 journeys made across the structure.

The new figures from bridge operators the Forth Estuary Transport Authority showed that last year 24,566,733 journeys were made across the bridge, compared with 23,739,120 in 2010.

This is the first time year-on-year numbers have been compared since the abolition of the tolls in February 2008. Movement across the bridge since then has been recorded by the bridge’s Weigh in Motion station, but mechanical failures in 2007, 2008 and 2009 made figures incomplete.

In a report, officials said the number of journeys over the bridge was affected by severe weather. November and December 2010 saw the worst winter in the 46-year history of the Bridge, resulting in a significant reduction in crossings.