New call for action on accident-prone bridge hit by vehicles 88 times in 5 years

Every time a lorry smashes into the notorious Rugby Road bridge near Hinckley^[1], traffic comes to a standstill and trains are halted. And new figures show that in the five years up to last September, 'Britain's Most Bashed Bridge' was struck 88 times, delaying 246 trains in total as well as thousands of motorists.

For passengers on the trains, the total delay time was just under 36 hours in total as they waited for engineers to arrive at the location to check the bridge was safe for trains to pass over. The research by Midlands Connect concluded that adding up each person's delay time, the total was more than 4,400 hours of wasted hours, costing hundreds of thousands of pounds to the local economy.

The low railway bridge was at one point named the most bashed bridge in the country^[2]. The new research is been described as "strong evidence for upgrades on a road of national importance".

Midlands Connect, which advises on transport and infrastructure projects across the East and West Midlands, said improvements were urgent considering the rate of growth in the area. The A5 sits at the heart of the so-called “Logistics Golden Triangle”, which is an area that is home to 2.89 million people with 1.32 million jobs, including many around Lutterworth's^[4] Magna Park.

Within the triangle, a further 1,300 acres of employment land is set to be developed, along with 111,000 new homes by 2031. Midland Connect said it was necessary to improve the A5 to ensure it can support such growth.

Swati Mittal of Midlands Connect said: “The bridge at Hinckley regularly tops lists of some of Britain’s most bashed bridges but our deeper analysis into the impact shows that thousands of passengers are delayed, the economy loses a significant amount and trains are severely impacted. This really is strong evidence for upgrades on a road of national importance.”

Dr Luke Evans, Member of Parliament for Bosworth, said: “Since I was elected the Watling Street bridge has been consistently one of the 10 most frequently hit bridges in the UK, and at one stage was dubbed ‘the most bashed bridge in Britain’. Every time it is struck it causes huge disruption, delays and diversions, costing the taxpayers both time and money.

“I have and will continue to raise this issue to get it resolved, and I am pleased a recent planning application may go some way towards solving the problem by lowering the road under the bridge. This is a welcome solution to an issue that has blighted our community for too long.”

“I recently met with Roads Minister Richard Holden to – yet again – discuss ways to improve the A5 and unlock our area’s full potential. I’ll continue to work with Midlands Connect to reiterate the strategic and economic importance of our region.”

Councillors in the area have previously told LeicestershireLive that nothing has been done to improve the situation^[5] because neither Network Rail nor Highways England, which is responsible for trunk roads such as the A5, want to pay the cost.

Commenting on the new research, Councillor Stuart Bray, leader of Hinckley & Bosworth Borough Council said the problem caused "untold misery" to local businesses and residents in and that investment was "crucial". Leicestershire County Council^[6] cabinet member for highways, Councillor Ozzy O'Shea, added: "It's time to fix this problem given this is one of the busiest routes through the county and crucial to the region's logistics and economy."

References

1. ^{^} Hinckley (www.leicestermercury.co.uk)
2. ^{^} the most bashed bridge in the country (www.leicestermercury.co.uk)
3. ^{^} Plan to solve problem of 'UK’s most bashed bridge’ might make matters even worse say experts (www.leicestermercury.co.uk)
4. ^{^} Lutterworth's (www.leicestermercury.co.uk)
5. ^{^} previously told LeicestershireLive that nothing has been done to improve the situation (www.leicestermercury.co.uk)
6. ^{^} Leicestershire County Council (www.leicestermercury.co.uk)