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It is the first time the bridge has been closed since it opened to traffic in August 2017
The Queensferry Crossing has been closed for the first time since it opened in 2017 after ice and snow fell from cables on to the carriageway.
The bridge connecting Edinburgh and Fife was shut on Monday night and could remain closed until at least Wednesday, the bridge operator Amey said.
Eight vehicles were damaged before the bridge was closed on safety grounds.
It has led to lengthy tailbacks as motorists take a 35-mile diversion across the Kincardine Bridge.
Wintry weather is continuing to affect Scotland, with an amber warning for snow now issued by the Met Office.
The £1.35bn Queensferry Crossing, which opened to traffic in August 2017, was expected to remain open in all weathers.
It was fitted with 3.5m-high barriers designed to ensure the bridge would not be closed by high winds.
Mark Arndt, of Forth Bridges Unit with Amey, told BBC Radio Scotland’s Good Morning Scotland that the closure was caused by a “unique set of weather conditions”.
“We had a combination of strong westerly winds… a mixture of snow and sleet that resulted in snow accumulations on the main cables of the Queensferry Crossing,” he said.
“At an elevated height, that snow accumulation became chilled.
“It accumulated in a reasonable size and fell to the carriageway. And it was on the grounds of safety that we took the decision to close the bridge.”
He said he was not aware of any major injuries caused by the falling snow and ice.
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Traffic Scotland
The Queensferry Crossing diversion route goes across the Kincardine Bridge
Drivers have been advised to take a 35-mile (56km) diversion via the A985, the Kincardine Bridge and the M9. Journey times are reported to be about 90 minutes longer than usual.
ScotRail said it was running extra trains services across the Forth Bridge and there are additional buses over the Forth Road Bridge.
Scottish Transport Secretary Michael Matheson said there had been a similar issue last winter when snow and ice built up on some of the cables, but the bridge had not been closed.
Mr Matheson said: “I recognise the frustration of travellers today, and I very much regret that the bridge has been closed for the first time, but it is a bridge that’s given us much greater resilience than the old Forth Road Bridge.
“There’s now been something like 30 occasions when we would have had only partial or no use of the Forth Road Bridge, whereas the Queensferry Crossing is continuing to function.
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The closure of the bridge has led to big build-up of traffic on alternative routes
The minister also pointed out that the bridge had not closed during the “beast from the east” in 2018, when the Met Office issued a red warning in Scotland for snow and ice.
“It appears that what happened last year and what has happened over the course of the last 24 hours is that it is in specific types of circumstances that this type of build-up is occurring on the cables which is presenting a problem,” he added.
Sensors are due to be fitted to the bridge this year that will give an earlier warning of ice build-up on the bridge structure.
The Met Office has issued an amber weather warning for southern Scotland of heavy snow showers for Tuesday afternoon and into the evening.
Snow showers were expected to become “frequent and heavy” over much of Dumfries and Galloway, the Borders and into South Lanarkshire and East Ayrshire.
A yellow weather warning for wind and snow is in place for much of the rest of Scotland until midnight on Tuesday.
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