The Alex Fraser Bridge has reopened to traffic, after being closed for hours on Friday over "public safety concerns" brought on by winter conditions.
In a tweet around 1:40 p.m., DriveBC announced the bridge is now fully open in both directions.
The bridge had been closed since early Friday morning due to the risk of falling ice or snow.
The Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure said the full bridge closure was "necessary to protect travellers due to snow buildup on the cables."
Rope technicians were unable to deploy the drop system that normally clears the cables due to high winds — meaning there was a risk of ice or snow falling from the cables onto the lanes.
However, with more snow, wind and frigid temperatures in the forecast for the Lower Mainland into next week, the ministry warned more closures could take place as needed on bridges or highways for safety reasons.
Weather conditions are monitored by the ministry and its maintenance contractors, and crews are proactively applying anti-icing brine on highways. Plows can be quickly mobilized to deal with any accumulating snow, the ministry said.
