Queensferry Crossing.

[orcadian]

Apparently they are busy installing ice sensors on the cables so that they can detect when there is likely to be a problem.  They will still have to shut it though!  Would it not be simpler to spiral wrap the cables with heating elements?  The power needed could be provided by a few small wind turbines and or solar.  Seemingly it only happens in strong winds anyway so the power will be there when needed.

Ian

[Jocko]

The Queensferry Crossing is still shut, though they hope to open it sometime today if the weather is as forecast. I hate to think about what the cost to business and the Scottish economy this closure will bring.
Seemingly, they had a similar occurrence last winter, but because no vehicles were damaged nothing was done about it. Measuring the temperature of the cables will just make things worse unless they put something in place to melt the ice as it forms.
This closure is a big thing. Can you imagine closing a motorway near you and forcing a 40-mile detour around the blockage? The knock-on effect on surrounding communities is huge.

[JimSh]

It's an awful lot of cables to heat.
Could they not divert traffic across the Forth Road Bridge or have the approach roads been changed so much that that is not possible?
I heard on one report that they were bussing commuters across the FRB but I suppose ongoing vehicles would still need to cross the Forth.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-51456296
PS
I've just realised that if they allow cars back on FRB it would snarl up the extra Park and Ride facility. Scratch that idea.
PPS and read in the article above about significant roadworks on FRB.

[orcadian]

Yes, an awful lot of cables to heat but it doesn’t need to raise the temp very much and not for prolonged periods.  Equate that cost with the extra fuel being burned in total with the detour - but that’s only the low hanging fruit called motorists that suffer.  They never look at the bigger picture do they?
Ian

[Jocko]

The FRB currently carries about 500 vehicles in 24 hours. They are doing remedial work to the bridge so only one lane in each direction is open with a 30 mph speed limit. To convert the bridge approach roads back to allow the bridge to be used for all traffic would require a huge amount of work which would not be feasible for a short term closure of the QFC.

[JimSh]

Open again. The commuters interviewed on the one o'clock news seem well satisfied with the Park and ride and extra trains.
Maybe more will be tempted to try it on a permanent basis especially when it goes autonomous.

[Jocko]

Going into Edinburgh City Centre I would definitely recommend the bus. I don't use the Park and Ride but if you use the one at Ferrytoll every bus crossing the bridge stops there. So there is a bus just about every two minutes! My wife prefers the train, but as an ex-bus driver, I love the bus. And for me, it's free.

[Jocko]

Had to go over to Danderhall today and driving conditions were atrocious. It was blowing a gale and while I was going over the Queensferry Crossing it was almost a whiteout with a mix of torrential rain, sleet and snow. Some cars even had their rear fog lights on. I was in lane one doing 36 mph, and I could hardly keep the car in the lane. There was a "Dreams" Luton van ahead of me and it was leaning at almost 45°. Traffic in lane two was hardly any faster. The thing was, the limit on the bridge was still set at 70 mph! There was a 50 mph limit southbound between Rosyth and Ferrytoll but not on the bridge. It was as if the powers that be thought "we cannot slow the traffic down on the bridge that isn't affected by the weather".
On our return it was sunny but the wind was still as bad. The limit was still 70 mph but they had closed the windward hard shoulder, obviously thinking stopping on it would be dangerous.

[John Ratsey]

Perhaps the powers that be thought that the wind shielding meant that vehicles were better protected when on the bridge than when on the unshielded roads at each end.

[Jocko]

I assume that was their thinking, but they were wrong. The bridge at 36 mpg was much scarier than the approach at 50 mph.