Drivers being reminded to expect long delays as emergency repairs are carried out on the Forth Road Bridge this weekend.
Urgent repairs mean bridge traffic will be restricted to a single lane in each direction from 3am until noon on Saturday and Sunday.
Pedestrians and cyclists will be able to cross the bridge using the west footpath/cycleway.
Chief engineer and bridgemaster Barry Colford said: ”We know from experience that queues of over 90 minutes are likely to build up after 9am, particularly on Saturday.”
Drivers are being advised to delay their journey, take an alternative route or use public transport.
”We’re sorry for the inconvenience this causes and would like to thank the travelling public in advance for their patience and understanding.
”Drivers shouldn’t expect to see much activity at road level as work will be taking place overhead, high above the carriageway on the east main cable.
”Traffic restrictions are necessary for safety while we lift an access cradle and other equipment into place,” he added.
The work has been scheduled at short notice after an inspection identified new damage to nuts on the bolts that hold the vertical hanger ropes to the bridge’s main suspension cables.
The hanger ropes loop around metal castings which are bolted to the cables by 944 steel bolts, each with a nut at either end.
Cracks had previously been found in a small number of the nuts during a routine inspection in 2007.
These nuts were replaced and the bridge authority stated its intention to replace all of the nuts over time as and when access and resources permitted.