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Sydney Harbour Bridge police operation causes lane closures, heavy congestion

A man has been arrested after climbing to the top of Sydney Harbour Bridge. He then got out of the vehicle and started to climb up.

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New South Wales police told local media that after initially refusing to come down, the man descended and was arrested at around 10:50.

Footage on Channel 7 showed a man seated on the arch of the bridge.

Wearing black sunglasses, black clothes and white running shoes, the man began the unsafe descent from the north side of the bridge, more than 90 minutes after the ordeal began.

Police said in a statement that emergency services descended on the scene, closing several lanes of city-bound traffic in Australia’s largest city as negotiators worked to bring him down.

Just before 11am, NSW Police Rescue officers were seen escorting the man off the bridge.

‘It looks like the police are going to have a hard time getting him out of there, ‘ Mr Millet said.

A Traffic Management Centre spokeswoman said traffic was heavy and advised motorists to avoid the bridge or use the Sydney Harbour Tunnel as an alternative. The latest reports said he had now climbed back down onto the road level.

Buses travelling over the bridge have been delayed by up to an hour.

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A third city-bound lane was closed just before 10am as police arrived.

The bridge has dedicated security over fears it could be a terror target