In the 4.05pm incident, the boom part of the crane on tow stuck to the bridge, badly damaging the bridge.

Witnesses said the head of the trailer lorry had passed through the 5m height of the bridge without problem, but the crane it was towing hit the crossing.

Traffic to and from the area was diverted by police and traffic wardens from the city council. Motorists were advised to avoid the stretch altogether.

State executive councillor Phee Boon Poh said the damage to the bridge was extensive and it was being dismantled right away to prevent it from tilting over.

“We have to remove it for public safety. Fortunately, no one was in the bridge at that time,” he said when contacted.

Pengkalan Kota assemblyman Daniel Gooi, who was on-site, said the lorry driver had been taken by police for a urine test.

The bridge is touted to be the oldest of its kind built by the Penang Port Commission in the late 1960s and was handed over to the city council in 1971, an official told FMT.

The pedestrian bridge connects Market Street Ghaut near the Nanyang Siang Pau office directly to the ferry terminus that connects to Butterworth.