Lorry collides with Newport railway bridge

COLLISION: The lorry which collided with a railway bridge on Cardiff Road COLLISION: The lorry which collided with a railway bridge on Cardiff Road

4.06pm

THE DRIVER of a lorry which struck a Newport railway bridge this afternoon told how he was thrown off his seat, hit his head on the wind screen and almost hit railings on the side of the road.

The incident happened just a week after another lorry crashed into the railway bridge on Cardiff Road in Newport.

Mark Williams, from Birmingham, was on his way to a collection at a business park at around 2pm when his empty 15-foot lorry struck a railway bridge at around 1.30pm.

He said he managed to hold on to the steering wheel to stop the lorry hitting any pedestrians. He was later taken to hospital.

Argus employee Gwyn Roberts said: "We just heard it, it was like a huge clap of thunder. It didn't stop underneath, it came staight through."

Last week a Homebase lorry hit the same bridge.

At least one service between Ebbw Vale Parkway and Cardiff was redirected via Newport after the bridge on Cardiff Road, near the Argus building, was briefly closed, according to Network Rail.

A Network Rail spokesman said it reopened the bridge around 3pm after a structural engineer had look at it and found the damage was cosmetic.

Police, who were called at around 1.55pm and were directing traffic at the scene, said the lorry has been recovered.


3.10pm

A LORRY collided with a railway bridge in Newport this afternoon.

The articulated wagon, which was not carrying a load, hit the bridge on Cardiff Road.

The driver of the vehicle was taken to the Royal Gwent Hospital after suffering minor injuries.

The lorry is the second to collide with the bridge within a week.

Comments(11)

Jinxey says...
3:49pm Tue 26 Jun 12

So no one does this for years.. and twice in a week. Oh dear.

Dolieboy says...
3:55pm Tue 26 Jun 12

Maybe he had the same map as the previous driver, who also failed to understand that if his unit + trailer is higher than the bridge, it don't fit. Guess he will be signing on now!!

Jimbo3814 says...
4:09pm Tue 26 Jun 12

Sat navs is the problem. Don't use your driving skills they trust a little machine that if not set right will lead you the wrong way.

youngashie says...
5:14pm Tue 26 Jun 12

Jimbo3814 wrote:
Sat navs is the problem. Don't use your driving skills they trust a little machine that if not set right will lead you the wrong way.
Quite right Jimbo3814 the trouble these days is that with the advent of sat navs to many drivers do not have map reading skills and go blindly where their satnav takes in my working days i used to use a truckers road atlas which gave the locations of and height&weight restrictions of most of the bridges anywhere in the UK

ComeOnCounty says...
6:35pm Tue 26 Jun 12

Sat Nav's are not designed to be used by large vehicles. Just another case of someone driving to the end of his nose and not looking at what was ahead of him.

Also if the Ebbw Vale to Cardiff line was redirected to Newport station because of this then why can't they add Newport to the route?

Dolieboy says...
7:52pm Tue 26 Jun 12

youngashie wrote:
Jimbo3814 wrote:
Sat navs is the problem. Don't use your driving skills they trust a little machine that if not set right will lead you the wrong way.
Quite right Jimbo3814 the trouble these days is that with the advent of sat navs to many drivers do not have map reading skills and go blindly where their satnav takes in my working days i used to use a truckers road atlas which gave the locations of and height&weight restrictions of most of the bridges anywhere in the UK
Bridge still had a height sign on it and driver should have known height of vehicle.

Howie' says...
12:21am Wed 27 Jun 12

At least one service between Ebbw Vale Parkway and Cardiff was redirected via Newport after the bridge on Cardiff Road, near the Argus building, was briefly closed, according to Network Rail.
So it's not only the freight trains & empty passenger trains that can travel via Newport, in an emergency trains with passengers aboard can go that way as well! I hope the Argus is taking note & will challenge Network Rail, Arriva Trains Wales & the WAG about this.

SWBorderer says...
7:43am Wed 27 Jun 12

youngashie wrote:
Jimbo3814 wrote: Sat navs is the problem. Don't use your driving skills they trust a little machine that if not set right will lead you the wrong way.
Quite right Jimbo3814 the trouble these days is that with the advent of sat navs to many drivers do not have map reading skills and go blindly where their satnav takes in my working days i used to use a truckers road atlas which gave the locations of and height&weight restrictions of most of the bridges anywhere in the UK
No excuse for hitting a low bridge, I am a trucker, I refuse to use Sat Nav. Update my truckers map every year, use that along side Google Maps, it has never failed me yet.

seren1973 says...
9:48pm Wed 27 Jun 12

Yes, I'm a class 1 driver too, & I've never ever used a sat nav, & I never shall.A truckers map with all the bridge heights- studied before you start your journey (with a back up route just in case) is all that's needed. *rolls eyes*

chris227 says...
8:44am Thu 28 Jun 12

the driver probably lost concentration laughing at the town

Adrian Williams says...
12:03pm Thu 28 Jun 12

Time for lorry drivers to wake up and spot oncoming bridges !

click2find

About cookies

We want you to enjoy your visit to our website. That's why we use cookies to enhance your experience. By staying on our website you agree to our use of cookies. Find out more about the cookies we use.

I agree