The QEII bridge remains shut for a second morning as Just Stop Oil protests continue. The road was first shut during the early hours of yesterday morning (Monday, October 17). Two members of the activist group climbed the bridge, causing chaos for motorists.
National Highways confirmed traffic on the southbound A282 carriageway has been held as a result of the police incident. Essex Police officers received a report shortly before 3.50am that two people had climbed onto the bridge and are currently at height.
Protest group JustStopOil have claimed responsibility for the disruption. A spokesperson for the eco-protest group said: “Two Just Stop Oil supporters have climbed to the top of the Queen Elizabeth II Bridge forcing police to close the bridge to demand that the government halts all new oil and gas licences and consents.
“At approximately 5am two climbers ascended the two 84m masts on the North side of the Queen Elizabeth II Bridge forcing the police to stop traffic from entering the bridge. It is expected that the bridge will remain shut for at least 24 hours.”
Yesterday, a spokesperson for Essex Police said: “The bridge has been closed while we resolve the incident which we will do as quickly and as safely for all involved. It does mean that we have had to close the bridge to traffic, but a diversion is going to be put in place through the tunnel.
“This is likely to cause delays throughout this morning and this incident may take some time to resolve due to the complexities of safely getting people down from height.”
Motorists planning on using this route during rush hour should expect delays, and are being expected to plan an alternate route.
Source Essex Live
