Britain's most bashed bridges revealed
Leicestershire PoliceA low bridge in Leicestershire has regained the dubious honour of being the most bashed in Britain.
Network Rail said the A5 Watling Street bridge in Hinckley was struck 22 times between 1 April 2024 and 31 March 2025.
That placed it ahead of Harlaxton Road in Grantham, Lincolnshire, which was hit 18 times in the same period and Stuntney Road in Ely, Cambridgeshire, which saw 15 crashes.
Network Rail has urged haulage drivers to check their vehicle heights and plan suitable routes after reporting 1,666 bridge strikes nationally - an 8.75% increase on the previous year.
Plans have been drawn up to lower the road under the bridge to reduce the number of crashes, but National Highways warned last month that the project will not happen quickly.
Research carried out by transport body Midlands Connect in 2023 concluded that delays caused by crashes at the bridge cost the economy an estimated £126,000.
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."
Britain's most bashed bridges
- Watling Street A5, Hinckley - 22 strikes
- Harlaxton Road, Grantham, Lincolnshire - 18 strikes
- Stuntney Road, Ely, Cambridgeshire - 15 strikes
- Stonea Road, Stonea, Cambridgeshire - 15 strikes
- Lower Downs Road, Wimbledon - 15 strikes
- Station B4105, Berkswell, Warwickshire – 14 strikes
- Ickleton Road, Great Chesterford, Essex, – 11 strikes
- Barrowby Road, Grantham, Lincolnshire – 11 strikes
- Abbey Farm, Thetford, Norfolk - 11 strikes
- Coddenham Road, Needham Market, Suffolk – 11 strikes
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