A MALFUNCTION OF the lift mechanism on the East Link Bridge has caused traffic chaos in Dublin today.
The bridge had opened to let a ferry pass through at around 10.30am, but failed to go down afterwards.
A spokesperson for Dublin City Council said that the bridge went into “fail safe mode when it detected an internal pressure drop”.
When this happens, they said, “it goes into a slow descent rather than the normal speed”.
This malfunction caused massive traffic delays in both directions, as the bridge was unusable.
A crash between East Wall Road and North Wall Quay around the same time added to he heavy delays caused by the bridge.
This “slow descent” lasted for 45 minutes, and the bridge was finally reopened to traffic at 11.15am.
Engineers are on site to try to determine why the bridge went into fail safe mode.
The spokesperson added that the bridge lifts an average of two to three times a day to allow ferry traffic through in the summer months.
This lift was its third today.
The upright bridge drew a confused reaction from motorists and passers-by.
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