Normal Service Resumed?

The saga of the Forth Road Bridge has dominated the news in recent days while attracting the usual crazed behaviour from people on social media.

Now while it's good news that the bridge has finally re-opened to most traffic, normal service has not quite been resumed because all HGV vehicles are still barred from using the crossing until February 2016.  

Despite the fact that on 10 December 2015 the First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon, told the Scottish Conservative leader, Ruth Davidson, that:

“The government’s absolute intention is to have the bridge open for people returning to work in the new year and for it to be open as normal to all vehicles that previously travelled over it. That is what we have said all along and it is what we continue to say.”

So clearly the bride is not 'open as normal' and something must have gone wrong with the the repairs timetable, if the First Minister's comments are to be taken at face value.

Yet instead of facing up to that fact a major 'spin' operation is now underway on behalf of the Scottish Government to deflect what looks like perfectly reasonable criticism over all the continued travel disruption.