HGV bridge strikes led to over 100 days’ worth of rail delays last year

New statistics from Network Rail reveal that bridge strikes involving heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) led to over 100 days (150,000 minutes) of delays for rail passengers in Britain last year. The report indicates that from 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024, there were 1,532 recorded incidents of HGVs colliding with railway bridges. This equates to roughly one incident every six hours, resulting in an estimated cost of GBP20M to the rail industry due to delays, cancellations, and repair work.

The data has prompted Network Rail to call on haulage operators and drivers to heed warnings and exercise caution on the roads as part of their ongoing 'Wise Up, Size Up' campaign. Within this campaign, Stuntney Road in Ely has been highlighted as the location with the highest number of incidents, known as 'Britain's most bashed bridge', with 18 strikes in the past year. Close behind are Stonea Road in Stonea and Lower Downs Road in Wimbledon, each recording 17 strikes.

Most struck railway bridges in Britain 2023/24:

1. Stuntney Road, Ely - 18 strikes
2. Stonea Road, Stonea - 17 strikes
3. Lower Downs Road, Wimbledon - 17 strikes
4. Watling Street A5, Hinckley - 15 strikes
5. Harlaxton Road, Grantham - 14 strikes
6. Doncaster Road (A638), Ackworth, Ferrybridge - 13 strikes
7. Warminster Road Bridge, Wilton - 11 strikes
8. Abbey Farm, Thetford - 11 strikes
9. Kenworthy Road Bridge, Homerton - 11 strikes
10. Jews Lane, Twerton - 10 strikes

Bridge strikes pose serious risks not only to the structural integrity of the rail infrastructure but also to the safety of both road and rail users. Following each incident, bridges must be thoroughly inspected to ensure their safety, which can significantly disrupt both rail and road traffic and affect local communities. Network Rail collaborates with various industry stakeholders to combat this issue and has seen a slight decline in the frequency of bridge strikes over the past two years, with a 4% drop noted in the last 12 months.

Analysis of local data shows some positive trends as well; while Stonea remains a frequent site for bridge strikes, it experienced an 11% decrease in incidents over the previous year and a notable 65% drop in delay minutes for rail passengers, from 100 minutes in 2022/23 to just 35 minutes in the past year. Bridge strikes reported across the railway network in the last five financial years:

• Year 2019/20 - 1,825 strikes
• Year 2020/21 - 1,650 strikes
• Year 2021/22 - 1,864 strikes
• Year 2022/23 - 1,588 strikes
• Year 2023/24 - 1,532 strikes

Efforts to enhance safety at vulnerable locations have included engineering upgrades, such as recent repairs to a bridge in Cambridgeshire. These repairs involved the installation of a new protection beam designed to withstand future strikes, alongside updated road signage indicating a new vehicle height limit of 2m, which is 100mm lower than the previous limit due to the structural enhancements.

Network Rail 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." National Highways senior structures advisor Hideo Takano said: "Although bridge strike incidents are comparatively fewer on our roads, they can cause hours of disruption, and we recognise the frustration these delays can cause.

We work with other transport authorities in the Bridge Strike Prevention Group as part of the collective drive to reduce bridge strikes and welcome Network Rail highlighting this issue during Road Safety Awareness Week. "Around two-thirds of bridge strikes on our roads are caused by vehicles carrying a load on an open trailer. Therefore, to reduce the risk of these incidents, we urge drivers to follow these simple steps; know your height, plan your route, and secure your load."

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