A MAJOR bridge used by 80,000 drivers a day has been shut down due to severe weather.
The crossing has been closed as part of the travel chaos sparked by Storm Bert, which has seen roads shuttered, trains axed and ferries cancelled.
The Met Office has activated a range of yellow and amber warnings covering most of the UK.
This includes the entirety of Wales and Northern Ireland, most of Scotland and much of the North.
As snow, rain and winds of up to 70mph sweep in, National Highways has also raised six red travel alerts.
Meteorologist Aidan McGivern said: “We’ll see two to four hours of heavy snow across parts of northern England and Scotland during Saturday morning.
“This snow will accumulate thick and fast, with five to 10cm at lower levels and as much as 20 to 40cm over hills accompanied by strong winds.
“You can expect blizzards over hills across northern England and Scotland, atrocious conditions for travelling and going over the hills and also the risk of power interruptions because of snow build up on power lines.
“So all in all, a multiple hazard event as we go into Saturday morning.”
Several busy A-roads have been closed due to the weather, while two have been shut down as the result of “serious collisions”.
Among the warnings is a full closure of the M48 in both directions between J1 and J2 in Gloucestershire.
As seasoned motorway hoppers might recognise, that stretch covers the entirety of the Severn Bridge.
Opened in 1966 to replace a century-old ferry route, the bridge crosses the River Severn and connects the M4 motorway to South Wales.
As a result, drivers coming from the South and South West don’t have to go all the way up to Gloucester just to double back on themselves to reach major cities like Newport and Cardiff.
National Highways announced this morning that the bridge would be closed due to high winds.
At first, traffic was only stopped in one direction but worsening conditions saw the restrictions extended to both sides of the bridge.
The closure will remain in place until the wind speed drops below 46mph.
Instead, drivers will have to stay on the M4 to use the newer Prince of Wales Bridge, about three miles down the river bank.
However, if the winds reach 80mph, both bridges will be closed and a new diversion put in place along the M5, M50, A40 and A449.
A spokesperson for National Highways said: “The M48 Severn Bridge in Gloucestershire is closed in both directions between J1 (Aust) and J2 (Chepstow) due to strong winds.
“During windy conditions, the Severn Estuary can funnel strong gusts across the bridges, which can be hazardous to traffic.
“The M4 Prince of Wales Bridge has barriers which reduce the effects of these gusts.
“However, the older design of the M48 Severn Bridge didn’t include these barriers, and we sometimes need to restrict access to the Severn Bridge for the safety of our road users.
“When this happens, traffic is diverted on to the M4 Prince of Wales Bridge.”
