A key Blue Mountains road closure is blowing out travel times – and causing ‘red hot anger’ among locals

About 12,000 vehicles use the Blue Mountains bridge daily, and the closure means many will have to make detours of up to two hours to get to Sydney or other parts of the area during peak times. Photograph: Transport for NSW

Almost two centuries ago, hundreds of convicts carried out a Herculean task in New South Wales’ Blue Mountains. After cutting rock from the cliff face, the chain gangs piled up the sandstone, added retaining walls and built a road.

Mitchells Causeway, or “Convict Bridge”, opened in 1832, and was in use for the subsequent 194 years – until last Sunday.