Queensway Tunnel was closed after a serious crash involving an off-road bike at about 13:05 BST, after Merseyside Police received a report of a vehicle crashing while travelling from Birkenhead to Liverpool. The tunnel runs between Liverpool city centre and Birkenhead, and the closure quickly cut off one of the main Mersey crossings.
A Merseyside Police spokesperson said motorists should try to avoid the area while police dealt with the incident. That left people crossing the river to adjust their journeys at short notice, with the tunnel shut soon after the report came in.
Merseytravel diversions via Kingsway Tunnel
Merseytravel said all river-crossing bus services were being re-routed via the Kingsway Tunnel until further notice. It also said those services were facing delays as a result, so passengers using buses across the Mersey had to deal with a longer trip as well as the route change.
The routing decision kept bus services moving, but not on their usual path. For anyone heading between Liverpool city centre and Birkenhead, the practical problem was no longer just the closure itself but the knock-on delay from sending traffic through another tunnel.
Queensway Tunnel and Mersey crossing
The Queensway Tunnel is a Mersey tunnel linking Liverpool city centre and Birkenhead, so any closure there affects cross-river travel immediately. In this case, the report came at about 13:05 BST and the response followed at once: avoid the area, use the Kingsway Tunnel where buses can, and expect delays until the closure is lifted.
For now, the most useful check for motorists and bus passengers is simple: do not plan on the Queensway Tunnel being available, and allow extra time if your journey depends on the river crossing.
