A railway bridge in Wilton is the 12th most struck in England, it has been revealed, as drivers are urged to know the height of their vehicle before setting off.

According to Network Rail, the Warminster Road bridge has been hit 10 times in the past year, making it one of the most struck in the country.

Mark Killick, Network Rail Wessex route director said: “There is no excuse to not know the height of your vehicle before starting your journey.

“As well as putting lives in danger on both road and rail and causing lengthy delays for passengers and road users, drivers who chance it at bridges are at risk of leaving their employers with a hefty bill for repairs and train delay costs, along with a strong threat to their own operator licence.”

The Warminster Road bridge and three other bridges across Network Rail Wessex were bashed 203 times between April 1 2019 and March 31 2020.

In total, 85 bridges have been struck at least once over the past year, delaying passengers by over 172 hours – equivalent to just over a week.

While that is a decrease of 239 in the previous year it is still a problem that costs the railway hundreds of thousands of pounds, according to Network Rail.

Nationally, almost six out of ten of the incidents are caused by HGV drivers who are now being reminded they could face tougher penalties including having their public service vehicle (PSV) licence removed.

Hideo Takano, Senior Structures Advisor at Highways England said: “Although bridge strikes are comparatively low for our roads, as part of the collective drive to reduce bridge strikes happening we work with other transport authorities as part of the Bridge Strike Prevention Group and welcome Network Rail’s new campaign.

“Bridges strikes can cause hours of disruption around two-thirds of bridge strikes on our roads are caused by vehicles carrying a load. So, to reduce the risk of this happening we urge all drivers to follow these simple steps; know your height, plan your route and secure your load.”