COUNCIL officials have apologised for any disruption caused after the Twin Sails Bridge suffered a systems error at the weekend - leaving it closed to traffic for almost an hour.

Drivers reported lengthy queues in the area, especially as nearby Poole Bridge is currently out of commission as part of its £4.7million overhaul.

This project, which was set for completion in June, has been hampered by tough ground conditions and by unrecorded cable and obstructions from previous bridges at the same site.

Poole's Twin Sails Bridge closed for a lift at 5.30pm on Saturday (JULY 29), but suffered a system failure six minutes later.

A Borough of Poole spokesman explained: "The monitoring software systems on the bridge detected a synchronisation error during the lowering of the leaves and stopped the bridge.

"This had to be checked by engineers before normal operation could be restored.

"The probable cause has been identified as a unique set of conditions that happened to occur at a particular time and changes will be introduced to the operating system to reduce the risk of a re-occurrence.

"We apologise for any disruption caused during this period."

The Twin Sails reopened to traffic and pedestrians at 6.30pm.

Meanwhile, Poole Bridge will not reopen until at least September.