IT'S A STRIKE FOR KINGWAY BRIDGE

Wednesday 6 Jun 2007

IT'S A STRIKE FOR KINGWAY BRIDGE

Region & Route:: | Wales & Western: Wales & Borders; | Southern: Wessex; | Wales & Western; | Southern

Train passenger delays caused by lorries hitting a West Country bridge could be dramatically cut. This follows a new initiative by Network Rail and Wiltshire Country Council at one of the worst hit bridges in the area. Kingway Bridge, in Hullavington, has two new interactive height warning signs to reduce the number of times it is hit by vehicles. In the past 12 months, the bridge has been hit 13 times, costing the rail industry over £80,000 in delays. The bridge is frequently hit by lorries that are too tall for the bridge, with the vehicles often getting stuck under the bridge. The consequences of a bridge strike vary from paint scrapes, to the bridge and track being moved sideways by the collision with the risk of an oncoming train being derailed. Robbie Burns, Network Rail's Western Route Director, said: "Every time this bridge is hit, we have to close the railway until an engineer can examine the structure for any damage. Consequently, this causes substantial costs, disruption and damage to the rail industry and to passengers." By using laser beams, the new interactive signs, funded by Network Rail, warn drivers approaching the bridge from both sides if their vehicles are too tall. Peter Harris, Principal Traffic Engineer at Wiltshire County Council, said: "We have organised the installation of these signs on behalf of Network Rail. Any bridge strike causes significant disruption and delays to traffic on the A429. The A429 is a Primary route and a diversion route for closures of the Motorway, so the installation of these signs should have considerable benefits to the motoring public as well as to the railway network". This project is part of Network Rail's wider programme to improve performance between London Paddington and the West Country. £29 million is being invested across Wales and the West Country via a series of small schemes that have been brought together by front line managers, of which Kingway Bridge is one.

Notes to editors

Since 2002, Kingway bridge has been hit 50 times (reported), resulting in delay costs of over £560,000: Year Reported Strikes Delay Cost 2002 9 £77,000 2003 7 £110,000 2004 12 £185,000 2005 8 £105,000 2006 11 £64,000 2007 (until May) 3 £20,000 TOTAL 50 £561,000 The most recent strike happened on 24 May, causing 40 minutes of delays to trains, costing the rail industry over £5,000. The railway overbridge spans across the A429 near the village of Hullavington, c.two miles from the M4. The maximum permitted vehicle height is 14'0" or 4.2m at Kingway Bridge. Collision protection beams are also in place on the bridge to protect it from substantial damage.

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