The West Midlands railway bridge struck the most revealed as number bridges hit by vehicles across the UK up by nine per cent in a year

The railway bridge in the West Midlands that has been struck by vehicles the most in the last year has been revealed.

Incidents of vehicles striking Britain’s railway bridges rose by 9% in a year, new figures show.

Network Rail said 1,666 bridge strikes were reported in the year to the end of March.

That is up from 1,532 during the previous 12 months, and represents an average of one every five hours.

The collisions in 2024/25 caused more than 186,000 minutes of delays to passenger trains and cost the industry an estimated £12 million.

Britain’s most-bashed bridge during that period was Watling Street in Hickley, Leicestershire, which was struck 22 times.

That was followed by Harlaxton Road in Grantham, Lincolnshire (18 strikes), despite having warning signs, chevrons and protective beams.

One of three incidents involving the bridge in a single week in November 2024 caused damage worth £423,000 and 59 hours of delays to passengers.

In the West Midlands, it was Station Road, Berkswell near Coventry that was hit the most with 14 incidents.

Network Rail is trialling a remote monitoring system at the location in an attempt to cut delays and costs when there is a bridge strike.

This involves cameras and impact-sensing technology capturing data and video footage after a collision, enabling an assessment of the bridge to be made without a physical inspection.

Martin Frobisher, Network Rail’s group safety and engineering director, said: “Every bridge strike endangers lives, disrupts rail services and delays tens of thousands of passengers while we inspect and repair the damage to the bridges.

“Each incident also costs millions of pounds that could instead be spent improving the network.

“With the busiest delivery period of the year under way, we’re reminding all drivers and operators to ensure they know their vehicle heights before they set off, plan their routes carefully, and watch for low bridge signs.

“A few moments of vigilance can prevent serious delays and keep everyone moving safely this festive season.”