A Balsall Common bridge has once again been named one of the most "bashed" in the country by Network Rail.

The railway bridge over Station Road - at Berkswell Station - was crashed into four times between 1 April 2023 and 31 March 2024, the joint most of any structure in the West Midlands.

Cradley road, Cradley Heath, was also hit four times in the period, with the bridge over Birmingham Road in Warwick hit twice.

The Station Road crossing was hit 12 times in the 2021/22 survey - at that point the seventh most across the UK.

Meanwhile in the most recent survey Stuntney Road, Ely was hit the most with 18 strikes.

Bridge bashes in the West Midlands delayed rail passengers by nearly 9,000 minutes over a 12 month period, the newly released figures reveal.

There were 65 bridge bashes across the West Midlands between 1 April 2023 and 31 March 2024, contributing to 8,838 minutes of delays for rail passengers – more than six days in total.

Nationally, the figures released by Network Rail reveal heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) collided with bridges on 1,532 occasions causing over 100 days (150,000 minutes) of delays for passengers costing the industry and taxpayers around £20m in delays, cancellations and repairs.

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Martin Colmey, Network Rail’s Central route operations director, said: “Every time a vehicle hits a bridge, not only can it cause delays to tens of thousands of passengers, but it can also cause serious safety issues for road and rail users.

“Working with partners we’ve made some really positive improvements across the West Midlands but there’s still more work to do to decrease the number of incidents further.

“I’d urge drivers to properly plan their routes, know the height of their vehicles, never rely on sat navs or apps to be up-to-date, and always look out for road signs showing the height restrictions for bridges.”

To reduce the number of incidents and the delays caused, Network Rail’s ‘Wise Up, Size Up’ campaign targets haulage companies and drivers and urges them to take better care on the roads.

The ongoing ‘Wise Up, Size Up’ campaign reminds drivers to check the height of their vehicles and plan their route in advance to avoid low bridges. Network Rail also has a team of bridge strike ‘champions’ which raise awareness across the rail network.