Tesco lorry gets stuck in narrow West Country lane
A Tesco driver seems to have either placed too much faith in their SatNav[1] or lacked local knowledge when their lorry got trapped on a tight corner in a lane in the West Country[2]. The 33-tonne articulated lorry was attempting to find an alternative route after the nearby A361 was closed following an accident.
It ran into serious trouble in the North Devon village of Ashford, between Braunton and Barnstaple, close to the A361. Villagers were surprised to see the lorry trying to manoeuvre through their narrow lanes in the early hours of Sunday morning.
The lorry got wedged right next to the church on a tiny road and tried to reverse about 100 yards (90 metres) but got trapped on a bend, according to one account. Despite the best efforts of the driver, the lorry found itself stuck in that bend and could not go anywhere, reports DevonLive[3].
Ashford resident David York Moore said the mishap had left locals bemused and entertained but also wondering how it had happened when there is a sign at the bottom of the turn off from the A361 saying the road is not suitable for coaches or long vehicles.
Mr Moore said: “I got woken at 5.30am this morning by blue lights from police cars so that lorry must have got stuck around that time. I don’t know if it was a SatNav error or if the driver missed the sign. I know it was dark but the sign warning that the road through the village is not suitable for coaches and long vehicles is fairly obvious.”
He said in the end a huge recovery truck had to be called out to Ashford and managed to free the Tesco[6] lorry. The lorry was rescued shortly after 9am so was stuck in the village for a good three to four hours yesterday morning, Sunday, November 19.
A recovery truck had to be called out to the village of Ashford in North Devon to try to remove the Tesco after it got stuck after trying to bypass the closed A361 road (Image: submitted)
The huge vehicle, complete with the supermarket branding and its famous strapline “every little helps” had driven off the A361 which connects Braunton and Barnstaple in the hope of finding a detour after the major A-road was closed following a serious collision.[7]
References
- ^ SatNav (www.bristolpost.co.uk)
- ^ West Country (www.bristolpost.co.uk)
- ^ reports DevonLive (www.devonlive.com)
- ^ Family fear homelessness at Christmas as house crumbles around them (www.bristolpost.co.uk)
- ^ Little-known West Country town set to be big in 2024 – with one of Europe’s longest stretches of sand (www.bristolpost.co.uk)
- ^ Tesco (www.bristolpost.co.uk)
- ^ after the major A-road was closed following a serious collision. (www.devonlive.com)