'Unprecedented' level of staff sickness shuts M48 bridge
- Published
An "unprecedented" level of staff sickness led to the closure of the M48 Severn Bridge westbound.
Tollbooths on the bridge were shut in order to protect the safety of staff and drivers, Highways England said.
Motorists had been advised to travel via the second Severn crossing, now known as the Prince of Wales Bridge, instead.
All westbound lanes were shut, between junctions one and two, from 05:00 BST before being reopened at 14:10 BST.
Earlier, a spokeswoman for Highways England said: "This is an unprecedented level of staff sickness.
"If we haven't got staff members in crucial roles on the toll plaza it is not safe for our team or the drivers so we have taken the decision to close the tolls.
"We are telling motorists to use the other bridge.
"Staff have been diverted to the second Severn crossing to assist staff there and keep traffic flowing."
The closure affected the stretch of motorway which links Chepstow in Monmouthshire and Aust in South Gloucestershire.
It remained open in the eastbound direction, which is not controlled by tolls.
The Grade I-listed bridge, which originally formed part of the M4 until the Second Severn Crossing opened in 1996, carries about 17,000 vehicles per day.
Allow Twitter content?
This article contains content provided by Twitter. We ask for your permission before anything is loaded, as they may be using cookies and other technologies. You may want to read Twitter’s cookie policy, external and privacy policy, external before accepting. To view this content choose ‘accept and continue’.
- Published8 June 2018
- Published5 April 2018
- Published8 January 2018