Spy camera installed to protect historic bridge
An historic hump-backed bridge over the Staffordshire and Worcestershire Canal, which has taken a battering from hit- and-run drivers, is now under special protection – from a spy camera.
The 240-year-old bridge at Caunsall, near Cookley, just outside Kidderminster, is currently having £30,000 worth of repairs after being hit six times by vehicles in the last 18 months. Now the bridge has become the first of its kind in the country to get CCTV sensors to guard against future knocks.
The Canal and River Trust, which cares for 2,800 historical bridges, has invested in the repairs to the parapet and railings and taken the "unprecedented" step of installing CCTV to catch any hit-and-run motorists.
And it is appealing to motorists to slow down when crossing such bridges to avoid the daily toll of damage.
The work on the bridge, just off the A449, has coincided with similar repairs, costing £15,000, being carried out by Worcestershire County Council on the nearby bridge over the River Stour.
As a result Caunsall Road has been closed to traffic since September 3 – but is expected to reopen by October 5,
Nigel Crowe, head of heritage for the canal trust, said: "Hump-back bridges, synonymous with Britain's canal network, were built for the passage of horse-drawn carts, not for today's speeding motorists, who cause up to £1 million damage to bridges each year.
"The majority of accidents are 'hit and run', leaving the Trust unable to recoup the cost of the damage from drivers' insurers and diverting vital funds away from work to conserve the nation's waterways."
If the CCTV proves successful, the Trust will consider installing more sensors at other black spots.
Mr Crowe added: "It really isn't rocket science – if you see a hump-back bridge sign then slow down and you will save yourself and us a great deal of expense and aggravation."
