Driver flees from van trapped under bashed bridge

The now recovered vehicle became stuck despite the warning signs

A driver fled from their van after hitting one of the most bashed bridges in the country, police said.

The Ford Transit became stuck under the two-metre high (6ft 6in) bridge at Stonea, between Chatteris and March in Cambridgeshire, on Tuesday night.

From 2023 to 2024 the bridge, which carries the main Ely to Peterborough railway line, was hit 17 times by vehicles, although people living locally claimed the figure could be higher.

The driver "made off across fields" following the incident, a Cambridgeshire Police spokesperson said.

Officers attended the Stonea railway crossing following reports of a bridge strike

The Stonea Road bridge was named by Network Rail as the joint second most bashed bridge alongside Lower Downs Road in Wimbledon, London.

Cambridgeshire County Council previously said it was working with Network Rail and a rail consultation firm to install cameras to monitor the site 24 hours a day.

The new cameras would monitor the location and collect data, such as general traffic information and near misses.

A county council spokesperson said reviewing this data would help the authority better understand the reasons bridge strikes occur.

Cambridgeshire County Council previously said it was working to install cameras to monitor the site