The Council has vowed to take action to prevent further incidents at a 'low' Edinburgh railway bridge after the latest incidents saw it struck by two lorries in as many months.
Fears over the safety risks posed to pedestrians, cyclists and road users by large goods vehicles attempting to drive under the overpass by the Cameron Toll roundabout have led councillors to call in help from Police Scotland and Network Rail.
Road signs warn approaching drivers on Old Dalkeith Road that no vehicles taller than 4.5 metres should continue under the structure.
But despite the signage there have been repeated incidents there over the years.
The latest saw an HGV exceeding the maximum height try to squeeze underneath it in November — becoming stuck and partially crushed.
Although the crash resulted in no casualties, it caused significant traffic delays, damage to the bridge and took emergency services several hours to clear and re-open the road.
Exactly two earlier in September, a lorry attempting to drive under the bridge buckled, overturned and blocked the entire road.
An eyewitness said at the time: "It looked really bad, the entire lorry had tipped over onto its side and the place was swarming with fire fighters. I hope the driver is okay. It looks like he smashed into the bridge."
Incidents that predate this year include another lorry that collided with the railway bridge in October 2014.
In a bid to 'reduce the number of bridge strikes to zero', independent councillor Derek Howie raised a motion at a full meeting of Edinburgh City Council on Thursday (December 16) calling for steps to be taken to ensure that no further bridge strikes occur.
Members agreed to request information from Police Scotland and Network Rail identifying 'any Council actions that could help mitigate the potential for instances like this'.
A report will now be sent to the Transport and Environment Committee with 'updated information or further actions the Council could take while retaining the essential objective of no more bridge strikes and, therefore, preventing casualties'.
Transport Convener Councillor Lesley Macinnes said: “People’s safety is of the utmost importance to us and we continually work to make safety improvements in response to specific collisions and concerns raised by the public.
"We would also remind drivers of their responsibility to be very careful to make sure their vehicles can fit effectively under the bridge. We will liaise with both Network Rail and Police Scotland to see if any improvements can be made to reduce bridge strike incidents at Cameron Toll roundabout.”
