Bridge remains shut over fears of disorder

The Haven Bridge can be raised to allow river traffic to pass

The company responsible for a bridge that has not lifted for river traffic since April said the closure was triggered by the bad behaviour of the public when it malfunctioned.

Peel Ports, which operates the Haven Bridge in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, previously said the bridge was shut due to "health and safety" reasons.

It has now emerged that when the crossing had a fault in February, frustrated travellers decided to take matters into their own hands and the operators feared it would happen again.

The ongoing blockade has infuriated boaters and marine industries that rely on being able to navigate through it to get between the Norfolk Broads and the North Sea.

Haven Bridge is not opening, despite a £2m mechanical and electrical upgrade, because of a row between Peel Ports and Norfolk County Council

In 2019, the 94-year-old bridge, which carries a major road into Yarmouth across the Yare, suffered a catastrophic failure that led to a £2m rebuild, completed in December.

The bridge broke down again on 2 February and was only being opened at 10:00 and 14:00 daily until 9 April, when Peel Ports shut the bridge completely, blaming a "health and safety concern", the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

It has revealed that the refusal to lift the bridge started after some people - who were said to be intoxicated – tried to direct traffic and others jumped over safety barriers in an attempt to see if they could still cross.

The company feared a repeat of the scenes, so has refused to open the bridge, even though it has a statutory duty to open it for river traffic.

'Unacceptable risks'

It is demanding that Norfolk County Council, which owns the crossing, does more to address its health and safety concerns.

"We saw people jumping the barriers, walking into the road and even had an intoxicated individual directing traffic – all on the same day," said director Richard Goffin, after the incident.

He also claimed staff had been threatened with violence on other occasions.

A spokesman said more than half a dozen incidents were reported over the course of a few days following the initial flash point on 2 February.

"The point is more that they happened rather than the number of them. No-one should be threatened at work," he said.

He added that the current situation left staff facing "unacceptable risks", but discussions with the council to resolve the concerns had failed.

Norfolk County Council said it had carried out repairs on the bridge following the February incident and it was now fully operational.