Understand
Potential solutions to prevent lorry crashes at Hinckley's frequently struck railway bridge
Overview
A plan to lower the road under the A5 railway bridge in Hinckley—which has been struck by tall vehicles numerous times—has faced delays, prompting a look at alternative preventative measures. Potential solutions include hanging chains, sacrificial strike beams, improved signs and signals, remote monitoring cameras and sensors, better driver training to address human factors, and mandatory specialist HGV satellite navigation systems.
Key points
- The A5 Watling Street bridge in Hinckley has been struck by tall vehicles at least 33 times since March 2025.
- A 2023 planning-approved scheme to lower the road under the bridge has not yet been fully signed off by Network Rail.
- Alternative prevention ideas include suspended chains, lighter sacrificial barriers further away from the bridge, and red traffic light-style warning signals.
- Network Rail has been trialling remote monitoring cameras and sensors at another frequently struck bridge in Grantham to assess impacts quickly.
- Industry experts highlight human factors such as fatigue, cognitive overload, and poor lorry parking infrastructure as major causes of bridge strikes.
- A local councillor has started a petition calling for the government to make dimension-aware commercial satellite navigation systems mandatory for all HGVs.