A technical malfunction of the Tasman Bridge’s remote traffic light control system caused the bridge to close by mistake this morning, creating significant traffic disruptions throughout Hobart.
The incident occurred just before midday when traffic lights remained red for approximately 15 minutes, blocking traffic between Hobart’s eastern and western shores.
Technicians had to manually resolve the issue before traffic could flow across the bridge again.
A State Growth spokesperson told Pulse the “glitch” occurred in the system that allows TasPorts to remotely close the bridge when ships travel under it.
The system was put in place after the SS Lake Illawarra bulk carrier struck the bridge in 1975, resulting in the death of 12 people.
The traffic disruption was exacerbated by a second, legitimate bridge closure around 1pm to allow a ship to pass underneath.
State Growth apologised for the inconvenience to motorists.
