Roadworks ran late, snarling traffic and diverting an ambulance

Roadworks on a ramp from Bústaðavegur to Kringlumýrarbraut and Hafnarfjarðarveg took longer than planned, causing significant traffic delays and forcing an ambulance on an emergency call to leave its route, mbl.is reported.

The work was finished before 5 p.m., said Ólafur Ágúst Axelsson, a specialist at the Icelandic Road and Coastal Administration. He said crews had hoped to finish sooner.

The agency received extra funding for asphalt maintenance late in the autumn and wanted to use it, Ólafur said. Night work was not an option because the nights had become cold and dark. The agency generally tries to carry out work in the capital at night during the summer because of its impact on traffic.

Asked whether earlier warnings on the roads could have prevented the congestion, Ólafur said it was difficult to reach everyone. The agency had sent notices to media, and information was available on umferdin.is. For work in individual neighbourhoods, it sometimes also posts notices in local Facebook groups, but he said there was no single group suitable for work affecting the whole city.

Ólafur said emergency crews are always allowed through work zones if they contact the site managers and ask to pass, even if that means driving over newly laid, hot asphalt. He understood that the traffic jam had caused only a limited delay to the ambulance.