Passenger traffic has returned to the Forth Road Bridge in Scotland after engineers completed repair work on the structure.

However, heavy goods vehicles will be unable to use the crossing until February 2016, when further work is set to be completed.

Cracks were discovered by engineers in early December and the bridge was closed to all traffic, causing significant disruption for drivers. The Forth Road Bridge typically handles 70,000 vehicles every day and is a major artery of the Scottish road network.

Officials originally had estimated the bridge would remain closed until after the festive period, meaning the initial work to repair damaged steelwork has been completed ahead of schedule.

Amey, which operates the bridge, has fitted a steel splint to the broken support truss, but said allowing HGVs onto the bridge could put the repair under stress, meaning they are still banned until a permanent fix is in place.

This means HGV drivers still face a lengthy detour, but transport minister Derek Mackay said he is "very certain that we'll meet that date of mid-February for the bridge to be open to HGVs".