Sat-navs 'damage 2,000 bridges per year'

By Richard Gray

Last Updated: 1:15am GMT 10/02/2008

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Satellite navigation devices have been blamed for causing millions of pounds worth of damage to railway crossings and bridges.

Have your say: Have you had a sat-nav disaster?

Network Rail claims 2,000 bridges are hit every year by lorries that have been directed along inappropriate roads for their size.


	Some councils have put up warning signs advising lorry drivers not to believe sat-nav advice

They said the damage and disruption has cost the rail industry £10 million a year and causes 5,000 hours of delays.

Rail bosses have appealed to drivers to pay attention to road signs warning them of hazards ahead rather than trusting their GPS systems.

PJ Taylor, from Network Rail, said in the last few years the number of vehicles hitting bridges had increased sharply.

Speaking on BBC Five Live, he said: “Sat-navs are a great tool but they are not an alternative for keeping your wits about you and obeying the rules of the road.”

He added that talks were now under way with satellite navigation companies about how to resolve the problem.

Network Rail said it was attempting to map the UK’s low bridges and level crossings so that information could be fed into sat-nav software.

Reports of lorries getting stuck in narrow country lanes and bridges after following sat-nav directions have now become commonplace.

Car drivers have also found themselves in difficulties after taking wrong turns due to satellite navigation systems and finding themselves on railway tracks.

Have your say

1 February 2008: Sat-navs blamed as lorry drivers hit bridges

1 February 2008: Satnav to put lorry drivers on right road

Comments

I work for Network Rail and am constantly amazed how many dopey lorry drivers think that(for example) their 15 foot high lorry will go under a bridge which is clearly marked 14 foot. Passengers suffer too as very often all approaching have to be stopped until the bridge has been examined to ensure it is safe.
Posted by Peter on February 9, 2008 5:20 PM
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SatNav are loaded with mistakes. One time TomTom tried to direct me down a barricaded road. Fortunately, my brain still works and I was able to choose heuristically an alternative route.

People who dumbly follow SatNavs are just that ... dumb. Surely this is common knowledge though?
Posted by Richard on February 9, 2008 4:54 PM
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I have been a Hgv driver for 10 years in both UK and Europe, and a user of GPS systems for a number of years. Users of these systems must remember that it is a computer and it is only as good as the programme it uses. As with all programmes you need to learn how to use it.
But the Gps should not replace common sense.
There seems to be a new generation of drivers who don't know how to read road conditions and information signs.
The Gps is a invaluble tool to guide you it should not be treated as gospel.
Posted by sundown on February 9, 2008 4:29 PM
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Not a disaster, but near Cirencester my Sat Nav sent me in circles with an endless cycle of "turn left" instructions.
Posted by tim on February 9, 2008 3:14 PM
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It's actually quite easy to resolve this - simply send the repair bill, shared 50/50 to the sat-nav co. that sends anyone on an inappropriate route and to the driver for not paying proper attention. That should sharpen them all up a bit.
Posted by Frances on February 9, 2008 1:30 PM
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There's a luddite tone to this article. Why can't the thrust be "how can sat-nav be made better"? Or, come to that "how sat-nav has saved on carbon emissions by making people's routes more direct".

Sure, they're imperfect and need improving. But don't pretend that everything new is dangerous and to be distrusted.
Posted by Phil Gale on February 9, 2008 12:53 PM
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