Not So Quick Fix.

Carnegie reads that the Big Cheeses at the Forth Estuart Transport Authority (FETA) may be planning to delay major roadworks on the Forth Road Bridge planned for next year.

Great news if it can happen without any impact on the bridge structure given that major disruption for Fifers will be avoided, but the worrying thing is that the change of plan appears to have been prompted by costs estimates for the work coming in millions of pounds over budget.

"MAJOR traffic disruption on the Forth Road Bridge could be averted by postponing large-scale roadworks until a new bridge is opened in 2016. Bridge officials are considering whether they can delay the replacement of worn-out carriageway expansion joints.The work would involve round-the-clock contraflows while ramps are installed to take traffic over the work."

Here's hoping, but at last FETA seem to have realised that part of their role is actually to minimise disruption to bridge users from routine maintenance of the Bridge.

Name And Shame.

So, it would appear that after a series of incidents involving lorry driving over the Forth Road Bridge during high winds that the big cheeses at the Forth Estuary Transport Authority (FETA) have decided to get tough by "naming and shaming" those drivers that do it, and maybe even prosecuting them.

All very laudable to "name and shame," but Carnegie is concerned that even allowing for a bit of adverse publicity there will still be too many lorry drivers that will be prepared to take a chance, and that all is takes is for a tiny proportion of those to find themselves toppling over to cause traffic mayhem in the east of Scotland, as we have already seen.

Maybe we need something a bit more concrete?

Paying The Bill.

And the big cheeses at the Forth Estuary Transport Authority (FETA) have done it again.

"THE cost of vital repair work on the Forth Road Bridge has risen by £5 million but there are signs that further corrosion in the main cables could be halted. The Forth Estuary Transport Authority (Feta) estimated in June that work to strengthen the deck and erect temporary bridges over the carriageways would cost £8.7 million. However, the tender submitted by Balfour Beatty – described as the most “economically advantageous bid” – is for £13.7 million."

How could FETA be £5 million pounds out on an estimated bill of £9 million? Bit of a cock-up somewhere thinks Carnegie.

Nuts.

And it gets even worse ...

"NEARLY 2,000 bolts which help hold up the Forth Road Bridge may have to be replaced after several were found to have cracked nuts. Laboratory tests are being carried out to determine the cause of the problem, which is believed to be a world first on a suspension bridge."

The fact that the problem is a "world first" is probably not unrelated to the fact the Forth Bridge is the only one run by FETA.

Bolts And Nuts.

Carnegie isn't surprised at the latest news about the Road Bridge given the appalling track record of the big cheeses at the Forth Estuary Transport Authority (FETA) when it comes to looking after the Forth Road Bridge.

"AN INVESTIGATION is under way to find out why cracks have appeared in nine heavy-duty nuts on the Forth Road Bridge. The news comes amid reports that the wet summer has caused setbacks to the dehumidification project which it is hoped will halt corrosion in the bridge’s main cables. Eagle-eyed workers on the bridge spotted the damage in nine of the 1888 nuts that are used to attach the steel ropes which hold up the roadway to the main suspension cables. The discovery was made during a routine inspection and four of the cracked nuts on the west cable have already been replaced, with the remaining five being replaced over the coming year when access platforms will be put in place as part of the ongoing work being carried out on the main cables. Consulting engineers FaberMaunsell have been appointed to investigate the cause."

The members of FETA should just resign and let someone else take over.

Troubled Waters.

So just when you thought it was a certainty that there would be a new road bridge over the Forth ....

"THE NEW chief engineer of the Forth Road Bridge has given the clearest indication yet that the corrosion threatening the structure's safety can be halted and repairs carried out to keep it open for 100 years. In a meeting with a campaign group opposed to a new Forth road crossing, Barry Colford, who took over as bridgemaster in February, said he was highly confident that cable drying, now under way at a cost of £10.3 million, would halt the decline in the strength of the bridge. He told the ForthRight Alliance: "Although the main cable has lost about a tenth of its strength since construction, we now have a high degree of confidence that the deterioration can be arrested by dehumidification." Last year's campaign for a replacement Forth road crossing was based on claims that corrosion might force early closure of the bridge."

Buried in the article is an admission that we won't know until 2012 how successful the dehumidifcation process has actually been. By which point if no steps have been taken to build a new bridge it will already be too late to avoid massive disruption to traffic travelling along the east of Scotland. If we don't need a new bridge then so be it, but relying on people who oppose a new bridge under any circumstances to call the shots on that decision would be a major mistake.

Strong.

So another one of those "good news, bad news" moment from the big cheeses at the Forth estuary Transport Authority (FETA): the bad news, well the strength of the Bridge's cables has reduced by 10% but the good news is that the Bridge will not have to be closed to HGVs as soon as was originally thought.

"The main suspension cables on the Forth Road Bridge have lost about 10% of their strength, it has been warned. However, engineers studying corrosion on the bridge said the cables may be deteriorating more slowly than previously feared. It had been thought weight limits on the crossing could be needed as early as 2014 but latest findings suggest a date of between 2017 and 2021."

And the irony is that it has already lead to some people calling for the replacement bridge over the Forth to be scrapped. You win some, you lose some.

Booths For Sale.

Carnegie sees that the Big Cheeses at the Forth Estuary Transport Authority (FETA) haven't been able to come up with a buyer for their £5 million toll booths which were removed after sixteen months when tolls were abolished on the Forth Road Bridge.

"BRIDGE bosses are yet to receive a single offer for tollbooths erected at the Forth Road, at a cost of £5 million, less than two years ago. The Forth Estuary Transport Authority (Feta) has admitted it is yet to find a buyer despite scouring Europe in a bid to find one. The hi-tech system, which proved to be hugely unpopular with motorists and businesses, was finally scrapped on February 11. The seven stainless steel tollbooths, sensors and a sophisticated server were in use for just 16 months from September 2006."

Not even Superman is interested. But should they put them aside in expectation of using them on the new Bridge when it is built in several years?

Tourist Attraction?

So the big cheeses at the Forth Estuary Transport Authority (FETA) are keen to find something else for themselves to do now that tolls have been abolished on the Forth bridge, with the latest suggestion that they should become part of Scotland's tourist industry.

"AN office block built just two years ago to handle the Forth Road Bridge tolls is set to be finally put into use – as a visitor attraction. Bridge bosses want to make more of the spectacular views of both bridges from their headquarters in South Queensferry. They are planning a £1 million revamp of the rundown car park which would see a new surface, landscaping and picnic areas installed in a bid to make the most of the area. A new cafe is also planned for an empty retail unit next to the car park. And there are also proposals to convert the unused office block next to the FETA headquarters into a bridges visitor centre. The offices were built for bridge operator FETA in 2006 as part of a £5m package of works to revamp the bridge's toll booths but are only partially used following the decision to scrap tolls by the Government."

Is it just Carnegie or would FETA be better to focus on using what limited powers is still has left to the run the Bridge and roads around it as well it can, rather than getting ahead of themselves and spending public money on "non-core" activities? The "picnic areas" could come in handy though for motorists stuck in any future traffic jams approaching the Bridge because of FETA's appalling approach to maintaining it.

And again ....

"THE FORTH Road Bridge was closed because of an overturned lorry for the second time this year amid a row about severe weather traffic restrictions on the crossing. Both carriageways were shut at 11.15am yesterday after a curtain-sided heavy vehicle travelling north toppled across the central reservation."

When is a Bridge not a Bridge ... when it is shut ... again.

Concrete.

Carnegie realises that he is in danger of becoming a bit of a "Bridge bore," but he must highlight the latest calamity to impact the operation of the Forth Road Bridge.

"RUSH-HOUR chaos hit the Forth Road Bridge again yesterday – this time caused by a concrete mixer spilling tonnes of cement on to the carriageway. Traffic queues stretched five miles into Fife last night after the two-lane southbound carriageway had to be closed for clean-up work."

Carnegie is reminded of the old adage that if you worked hard you made your own luck. Given the run of bad luck which seems to be afflicting the Forth Bridge Carnegie suggests that the Big Cheeses at the Forth Estuary Transport Authority (FETA) aren't working hard enough.

Good news ... bad news.

So were you one of the Fifers that got stuck in the major tail backs of traffic approaching the Forth Road Bridge as work started to remove the toll booths?

"IT SHOULD have been a small victory for hard-pressed motorists, who were finally able to cross one of Scotland's busiest bridges without paying. However, commuters who hoped to sail over the bridge without stopping to pay were met with two-mile tailbacks because of roadworks to remove tollbooths on the Forth Road Bridge."

We had delays putting the toll booths up .... and now we are having delays taking them down .... thanks again to the big cheeses at the Forth Estuary Transport Authority (FETA).

Bridge to Damascus.

So, Carnegie reads that "THE CONVENER of Forth Estuary Transport Authority has welcomed the imminent abolition of bridge tolls, two years after stating such a move would be “irresponsible.” Councillor Tony Martin yesterday said scrapping tolls on the Forth road bridge was the only fair option. However back in 2006, Mr Martin, who was made convener last year, opposed a motion to lobby the transport minister over tolls, stating it would jeopardise funding for bridge maintenance and projects such as the M9 spur."

At least he saw merit in the argument in the end, albeit after doing his best to block abolition of tolls for at least two years. There is more joy in heaven over a sinner that repenteth .... there are a lot of them about on the issue of tolls abolition on the Forth Road Bridge, but the sad thing is that Councillor Martin is actually a Fife Councillor, albeit a Liberal Democrat one.

Bridge closed.

Well. Were you one of the tens of thousands of motorists who got caught out yesterday by the closure of the Fortyh Road Bridge, all because of a dodgy painting gantry?

Whilst the weather conditions were extreme, surely the big cheeses at the Forth Estuary Transport Authority (FETA) should be making sure that anything they allow to be raised above the deck of the Bridge could stand up even to extreme weather conditions?

Another example of poor management by those at FETA who really should know better?

On the cheap.

At long last, the big cheeses at the Forth Estuary Transport Authority (FETA) are trying to save some cash on the "toll plaza debacle" by using a contractor who is already on site to demolish the canopy over the Bridge's tolls.

"THE MOST visible sign of the fact that motorists have to pay to cross the Tay road bridge—the toll plaza where the money is collected—could be gone by March ... Cleveland Bridge (UK) Ltd, which is working on a £19 million contract to replace the bridge bearings, has submitted a quote of £263,000 for the demolition work and the installation of subsequent traffic management arrangements on the southbound carriageway."

About time too says Carnegie.

Bridge roadworks - Fife cut off.

Carnegie reads that the big cheeses at the Forth Estuary Transport Authority (FETA) have said that resurfacing work on the Forth Road Bridge won't have to continue beyond the end of October because improvements in the weather have meant that they have managed to "catch up" on earlier delays.

Carnegie doesn't think that FETA should be giving itself such a big pat on the back for catching up on delays which had already occurred, given the shabby way in which it seems to have undertaken the work. Rather than throwing construction workers at the Bridge when half of it was closed and getting as much work done as possible, they seem instead to have used the minimum amount of resource to get the work done, which inevitably means when the weather is poor you get delays.

Delays for dozens of weekends over the last couple of years... sometimes running to an hour each way ... on one of the major arterial routes in Scotland ... simply to save a bit of cash ... really isn't good enough. Get your act together FETA.

For whom the tolls toll.

Carnegie notes that the current Forth Road Bridgemaster, Alastair Andrew, has apparently offered to take early retirement after a report concluded that the removal of tolls on the Forth Road Bridge later this year will leave him with nothing to do.

No doubt when the delightfully, if rather cheesily, named Forth Estuary Transport Authority (FETA) agrees to let him go he will walk away with a suitably large payoff and pension which reflects the £100,000 salary which his role carried.