Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many railway bridges have undergone repairs as a result of a road vehicle crashing into the bridge in the last 12 months.

Network Rail is responsible for managing and maintaining its bridge stock; the Department does not hold information on the number of repairs undergone on rail bridges due to vehicle collisions in the last 12 months, or the cost to the public purse. As the owner of mainline rail infrastructure in Great Britain, Network Rail collect information on vehicle collisions with rail bridges. The below report, published on Network Rail’s website, summarises some of the impacts of rail bridge collisions:

https://www.networkrail.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/Bridge-Strikes-Risks-Consequences-and-Costs-2020-accessible.pdf.

The Department for Transport has invested £3 million to help create a digital road map developed by Ordnance Survey, and includes information on height and weight restrictions that can be used in SatNavs or other devices to improve the quality and accuracy of routing advice.

In addition, the DfT works with bridge owners, including Network Rail, to raise driver awareness and offer advice on avoiding low bridges. It has published a suite of documents under ‘Prevention of bridge strikes: a good practice guide’ on GOV.UK, with specific guidance for both operations and managerial staff, plus professional drivers, and professional drivers of passenger vehicles:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/prevention-of-bridge-strikes-good-practice-guide. The Government has also published comprehensive advice on signing rail bridges in Chapter 4 of the Traffic Signs Manual:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/traffic-signs-manual.

Foreign language guides have also been produced for drivers from other countries unfamiliar with our roads. These guides are endorsed by the European Transport Safety Council.