Selby toll bridge out of action
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• Selby toll bridge was rammed out of action on the night of August 7 by a fully laden 450 ton motor barge.
The bridge was built in 1791 and is a key link in the A63 Hull-Leeds-Liverpool trunk road, and over 1,600 vehicles an hour pass over it at peak times. Lorries and cars travelling between the East and West Ridings were forced into a 30-mile detour.
A wave of criticism over the vulnerability of Humberside's main road link with the industrial north and nort h-west has arisen, stressing the urgent need for the early construction of a Selby by-pass with a new bridge over the River Ouse.
Mr. E. 0. Walton, secretary of the Hull area of the RHA. commenting, said: "This incident again highlights the need for a by-pass. The bridge is archaic and unsuitable for modern traffic. This association has been pressing for an alternative bridge for years and principally the need for a dual carriageway from Hull to the Al which to a great extent would eliminate the use of the Selby toll bridge."
It is understood the bridge is likely to be closed for at least three weeks.