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Go Forth and multiply...
Page 18
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Not everyone vvelcomes the idea of heavier and longer trucks on UK
roads — particularly those in charge of bridges. David Harris reports.
THE MANAGER OF one of the UK's most famous bridges has come out against plans to evaluate ultra-heavy trucks.
Alastair Andrew, who runs the Forth Road Bridge in Scotland, says trials of vehicles weighing up to 84 tonnes would cause "disastrous" damage to long-span bridges and he would be concerned if the Department for Transport gave the go-ahead for the trial.
The D1T currently has two applications from operators to consider: one from Denby Transport to run at a maximum of 60 tonnes; and the other from Stan Robinson to run at 84 tonnes.
A INF spokesman says even if the trials were given the go-ahead it would be quite likely that restrictions would limit the roads on which the trucks could travel, Long-span bridges might well he among the routes excluded.
One of the reasons that the Forth Bridge's managers are so concerned about heavy trucks is that they believe damage to the road surface is already increasing.
A spokeswoman says: -The surface used to last for 25 years. now it lasts for just seven. As cars haven't got any heavier it must be down to the lorries."
The need to keep the road surface in good condition is one reason why the bridge authorities argue that the toll on the bridge must remain, despite the fact that the construction costs of the bridge were met many years ago.
The bridge authority adds that in addition to road repairs, paint ing the bridge costs more than £65m a year.
The authority is also paying for the new road to replace the A8000, linking the bridge to the M8,which will cost more than £35m.