A FALL in traffic across the Tay road bridge last year and into the current year—the first reduction since the bridge was opened in 1966—seems to have been a blip.

Bridge manager John Crerar told the joint board, meeting in Dundee yesterday, that traffic levels were on the rise again but he had been asked to investigate the reasons for the drop in traffic over the past year.

Traffic figures had, for the last decade, increased by 2.5% annually but there had been an 0.8% decrease in crossings over the past year.

The reasons were unclear but Department of Transport figures for the same period showed a national drop of 0.4% in car traffic compared with 2004.

It was suggested this reflected the costs of motoring, while inquiries to other major bridges in the UK indicated either no change or slightly reduced levels of crossings for 2005.

It was also suggested the one-day public workers’ stoppage in Dundee earlier in the year had contributed greatly to the reduction in traffic, since the numbers who used the bridge on the day had not been counted.

Mr Crerar said Dundee City Council had also suggested the reduction in crossings might be linked to the level of disruption caused by the works on West Marketgait opposite the rail station, while Fife Council had suggested demographic or employment changes were responsible.

Mr Crerar said the indications were that traffic was increasing by 3% now, with the past month up by 2.9%. Last year’s decreases, he said were possibly a one-off.