Sydney Harbour Tunnel shuttered due to power outage, motorists may face several delays

A power failure has led to the shuttering of the Sydney Harbour Tunnel. As a result, the Transport Management Centre is urging motorists to avoid the tunnel and the Sydney Harbour Bridge.

Motorists will likely experience several delays. Following the outage, which occurred at 10:20AM on Monday and caused heavy congestion in the area, they were diverted to the Sydney Harbour Bridge.

Speaking with AAP (via News.com.au), a NSW Transport spokesman said the power outage issue is being dealt with currently. However, it has not been made clear when motorists will be able to access the tunnel. Major substations including Crows Nest and North Sydney were affected by the power outage.

According to a spokesman from Ausgrid, “Emergency crews from Ausgrid are working to safely reconnect electricity supply to the Sydney Harbour Bridge as quickly as possible. Power to the tunnel was interrupted shortly after 10am by a momentary outage affecting major substations at Crows Nest and North Sydney. Supply was safely restored to all other customers in less than a minute, and investigations into the cause of this outage are continuing.”

Detailed security checks were due to be executed before the power could be restored and, subsequently, the tunnel could be reopened. People have been asked to take alternative routes. A Transport Management Centre spokeswoman said, “Traffic is very heavy as motorists already in the area are being diverted [from the tunnel] over the bridge.”

It is not yet clear how long fixing the power outage would take. Those who need to access the harbour have been suggested to use Victoria Road, Anzac Bridge or Ryde Bridge.

Buses headed towards the bridge are running 15 minutes late.

On Monday morning, a collision between a motorcycle and a bus on a freeway near the Sydney Harbour Bridge had caused congestion on the bridge.