The cables have between 19 and 75 strands depending on location and are spaced about 7.3m apart. The Gloucester Harbour Trustees have responsibility for controlling navigation in the estuary's tidal waters upstream from the bridge.Until 1966, road travellers could either use the Aust Ferry, which had operated since medieval times (and as a car ferry since 1926), or use the scheduled car shuttle train service through the Severn Tunnel between Pilning and Severn Tunnel Junction, which operated from 1926 until 1966. The Second Severn Crossing is part of a long history of renowned British bridge-building. However, a report by the Department of Transport as part of the 2008–2010 Severn Tidal Power feasibility study carried out by the Department for Energy and Climate Change,[both departments, or what?] Tolls were set annually by the government based on the previous year's change in the Retail Price Index. Similarly, discussions continue about whether we should invest a lot of money in a high speed rail network to improve transport on major routes across Britain and to boost our economy. Tolls are collected from west-bound traffic near Rogiet, some Template:Convert from the Welsh portal of the bridge. The cost for renaming the bridge, and the two signs erected, one at each end of the bridge, was £216,513.39. The Severn footpath – on the sea wall – is part of the Severn Way that leads from Gloucester, Slimbridge and the Second Severn Crossing.Extensive sea defences have been constructed in recent years and this provides a popular walkway along its length. [5] Tenders were invited in 1989 and in 1990 the concession to build the bridge was awarded to Sev­ern River Cross­ing plc. In 2009, the planned toll for cars would have been £5.50, as the announcements listed,[20][22] but the actual toll charged was £5.40. A monorail with rapid access train (RAT) was installed hanging beneath the crossing deck to facilitate inspection and maintenance, but it closed shortly after opening because cracks were found in the welds between steel rails. Second Severn Crossing. The announcement said that even after repayment was complete the toll charges would likely remain at the same levels. Beds of eelgrass occur on the more sheltered mud- and sandbanks. Your friends can share their recommendations at the following link. He said that the renaming would be "a fitting tribute to His Royal Highness in a year that sees him mark 60 years as The Prince of Wales and decades of continued, dedicated service to our nation." Its location is farther to the south than the old bridge and, being more in line with the landward sides of the M4 motorway, is a shorter journey when travelling between England and South Wales. The 37 bridge pier foundations on the approach viaducts are Template:Convert apart, and consist of open concrete caissons weighing up to 2,000 tonnes, which were founded on the rock of the estuary bed. It has also helped to increase business in Wales, by improving road connections. Let’s get to 50,000! In 1976, in recognition of the importance of the estuary as a wetland used by migrating birds, an area of 247 km2 (95 sq miles) was designated a Ramsar site. There are also 3m high baffles on each side of the bridge to deflect the wind. Shoots Bridge is not far from Sir John Hawkshaw's Severn Tunnel (1886, ST500860) and required careful siting of its 2m diameter bored concrete pile foundations beneath its caissons that reach into the bedrock below the tunnel. Template:River Severn The consortium would also take over the management of the old bridge and the associated £100 million debt. The path taken by the bridge is close to that of the Severn Tunnel which has carried the railway line beneath the river bed since 1886. This presented the engineers with a constraint: packets of work were scheduled at low tide, and needed to be completed within the short windows allowed by the tides.The concession given to the consortium which financed, built and operate the bridge required them to take over the outstanding debt on the original Severn Bridge and to operate the two bridges as a single entity. The new crossing carries more traffic than the Severn Bridge, which is still in use. The Second Severn Crossing (Template:Lang-cy) is the M4 motorway bridge over the River Severn between England and Wales, inaugurated on 5 June 1996 by HRH The Prince of Wales to augment the traffic capacity of the original Severn Bridge built in 1966. A proposed Severn Barrage could constitute a third crossing if one is ever built. This second crossing was built to relieve traffic congestion on the original Severn Bridge, linking Wales to England across the Severn Estuary.