New
figures


released
by
Network
Rail
show
that
high
lorries
colliding
with
bridges
caused
over
100
days
of
delays
for
trains
in
the
twelve
months
to
March
this
year.

From
1
April
2023
to
31
March
2024
there
were
1,532
reported
bridge
strikes,
equal
to
one
every
six
hours,
which
cost
the
rail
industry
around
£20
million
in
delays,
cancellations
and
repairs.

The
new
figures
have
come
as
Network
Rail
urges
haulage
operators
and
their
lorry
drivers
to
‘Wise
Up,
Size
Up’
and
take
better
care
on
the
roads.

Stuntney
Road
in
Ely
has
the
unflattering
title
of
‘Britain’s
most
bashed
bridge’
as
part
of
Network
Rail’s
annual
compilation
of
big
hitters
–
with
18
recorded
incidents
over
the
past
year.
Next
worst
were
Stonea
Road,
Stonea
and
Lower
Downs
Road,
Wimbledon,
which
were
each
bashed
17
times,
or
every
three
weeks
on
average.

Network
Rail’s
‘Wise
Up,
Size
Up’
campaign
reminds
lorry
drivers
to
check
the
height
of
their
vehicles
and
plan
their
route
in
advance
to
avoid
low
bridges. 

Network
Rail
also
has
a
team
of
bridge
strike
‘champions’
covering
each
route,
who
visit
haulage
companies
in
their
areas.
The
last
two
consecutive
years
has
seen
a
reduction
in
the
total
number
of
incidents,
with
a
4
per
cent
reduction
in
the
last
year
alone.

Improvements
have
been
identified
on
a
local
level
too.
While
Stonea
is
second
on
the
list
of
recorded
incidents
for
2023/24,
it
did
see
an
11
per
cent
reduction
in
bridge
strikes
last
year
compared
to
the
year
before.

In
February
2021
Network
Rail’s
engineers
worked
on
a
repair
on
the
Cambridgeshire
bridge
that
involved
the
installation
of
a
new
protection
beam,
designed
to
withstand
future
bridge
strikes
and
making
it
stronger
than
before.
This
extra
protection
helps
to
reduce
disruption
to
rail
and
road
traffic
in
the
event
of
future
strikes.
Cambridgeshire
County
Council
also
updated
the
road
signs
with
its
new
height
of
2
metres,
which
was
unavoidably
10cm
lower
than
before
because
of
the
new
beam.

Network
Rail’s
group
safety
and
engineering
director
Martin
Frobisher
said:
‘Every
time
a
vehicle
hits
a
bridge
it
can
serious
safety
issues
for
road
and
rail
users.
To
compound
matters,
these
incidents
can
delay
tens
of
thousands
of
passengers
while
we
inspect
the
bridge
and
repair
any
damage,
creating
cost
from
public
funds
which
should
be
used
upgrading
and
improving
our
network.

‘We’ve
done
a
lot
of
work
with
transport
partners
to
tackle
bridge
strikes
and
it’s
encouraging
to
see
this
is
paying
off
with
a
general
downward
trend
in
the
number
of
incidents.
But
with
a
strike
every
six
hours
there’s
still
much
to
do
and
we
urge
operators
and
drivers
to
properly
plan
their
routes,
know
the
height
of
their
vehicles
and
be
vigilant
for
road
signs
showing
the
height
of
bridges.

‘We
will
report
those
who
don’t
to
the
Traffic
Commissioners
and
Network
Rail
always
looks
to
recover
the
entire
repair
and
delay
costs
from
the
driver
and
the
operator.’