The DfT says there are an average of six bridge strikes a day at an annual cost of some £50m to the country. An operator can expect to pay at least £500 if his vehicle is involved in an incident, but the average charge levied by Network Rail is closer to £25,000, although this could be as high as £1m if a bridge carrying a major rail line is hit.
To combat this issue Crewe-based Bridgeclear has launched a number of upgrades to its basic system allowing operators to use their existing navigation
system but with low bridge information added or to use existing screens - such as those used for reversing cameras - to display bridge information provided by Bridgeclear. It also offers a stand-alone navigation system.
MD Paul Ramsey adds: "Most of the time low bridges are not a problem if you do a regular motorway run you'll never have an issue. But if the motorway is closed and the police decide to divert you without putting any procedures in place for high vehicles then you could have a problem."
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