A MOVE to effectively close the Wallasey Tunnel to lorries for six months could have a "devastating" effect on the region's economy, business leaders warned last night.
The Kingsway (Wallasey) Tunnel is currently used by around 4,500 lorries a day travelling between Liverpool and Cheshire.
But work on the Bidston Moss Viaduct, which takes traffic to the M53 from the Wirral side, means a weight restriction is likely to be imposed on it in the New Year.
This will see any vehicle over three tonnes prevented from using the bridge and its link roads for long stretches, the Highways Agency has confirmed.
Sources told the Daily Post lorries could be barred from the link roads for at least six months and from the viaduct itself for more than three years.
This will lead drivers to either battle their way through Birkenhead to get to the A41, or travel to the Runcorn Bridge which is already heavily over-burdened. The Birkenhead tunnel is already off limits to heavy lorries.
The news brought renewed calls last night for the proposed second Mersey crossing to be approved as a matter of urgency to help ease the burden on the region's road infrastructure.
Tony McDermott, leader of Halton Council and chairman of the Mersey Gateway campaign, said: "Because of the sclerosis in the road network we have continual crises occurring, whether it's at the Runcorn bridge, tunnel or M53. There is no release valve."
A bid for a second crossing has now been submitted to the Department of Transport, with a decision expected early next year.
Wirral South MP Ben Chapman added: "Any significant increase in traffic congestion causes problems much wider than my own constituency, and it could damage businesses and maybe have implications for the wider regional economy."
News RSS Feed