If a bridge was marked at say 14ft 6" and your lorry was 14ft 5", would you risk it?
How can you be sure just how high your trailer is (if say you pick up an odd size trailer) and what leeway do you give yourself (ie 2" under the marked height?).
Closest I’ve come to hitting a bridge is about 1/4 of a mile. That’s where the sign was that said low bridge, so I didn’t go any further. Phew, Close call or what ■■?
Haha, I should rephrase that, I meant height wise, as in, have you had to slowly idle under a bridge in fear of hitting it.
T’was a sarcastic answer.
Mainly because the same question gets asked here every week, week in week out, without fail.
Tarrman:
If a bridge was marked at say 14ft 6" and your lorry was 14ft 5", would you risk it?How can you be sure just how high your trailer is (if say you pick up an odd size trailer) and what leeway do you give yourself (ie 2" under the marked height?).
If the bridge was marked 14’6 and my truck was 14’6, I wouldn’t even slow down for it
Hit one in 30 years, passed under it every week for a year before, but resurfacing over the weekend reduced the hieght, I was the 13th (unluky for some) to hit it on the wednesday, all co’s bot a payout as bridge marked at 13.6’ when it had been reduced bu 3’.
got under a few in europe with air bags dropped, with a trailer at 4.2mt.
What’s the closest you’ve come to hitting a bridge?
About 5mm I reckon ?
4.1 with a 4.2 trailer regularly at Sees when shipping out through Caen 
61500 Sées, France
m.google.co.uk/u/m/RtilLX
Now a 4m, maybe it sank 
When I was starting out I used to do dock traction for a large northern Irish concern.
At the time I was driving a 3 series Scanias with a tag axle and on this particular day the load was 4 big lumps of stone in a curtain slider. I tipped somewhere around the Buxton area and used the same route both to and from the tip. No problems heading in but having tipped and lifted the tag found that running under one of the bridges on the way out the front edge if the trailer roof rubbed the rivets on the underside of one of the bridges. I remember it being quite a deep bridge and I managed to drop the tag and suspension and get through. Learnt my lesson hat day that lifting the tag adds a good 6 inches of travelling height.
A few years later I was midway through a milk round of prawn deliveries across italy and had just tipped two cold stores around pescara. To get to the harbour you had skirt the town on the motorway and then cut across to the coast and run back up the beach road. Having tipped I worked out that I could take a shortcut out running north along the old national road. I tried this and found a weight limit so turned round and headed back the way I came, or so I thought. I came to a cross roads and turned right following the signs for motorway. As I completed the turn I saw a sign for a 4.0M bridge, no problem I can get under that. A quarter mile later I found the bridge dipping under a railway line and I can only describe the lay of the road as like dropping down a level in a multi story carpark. I edged up to it and crept the front of the truck under stopping when the aerials pinged. I got out and it was obvious that the trailer axles would still be on the upper level as the unit reached the lower level and I would end up wedged as the trailer roof caught the top. There was 4.0M of clearance but only if you were about 5M long. I caused quite a bit of chaos, Italian traffic style, reversing back to and across that crossroads to allow my escape.
Cheers
Neilf
That’s more like it, a nice helpful post 
3.7 with a 4m euroliner in a small German town in the Ruhr. That was a head out the window seat nipping one. 4.3 with a 4.4 in Northern Germany a couple of months ago 
3.9 with a 4.25 earlier in the year in Mandeleau la napoulle, southern France
I’ve always chickened out of taking a supermarket combination under this bridge. I’d rather be safe, and assume the sign is accurate, rather than listen to those that would argue “There’s always a few inches of spare clearance you know!”
waynedl:
Tarrman:
If a bridge was marked at say 14ft 6" and your lorry was 14ft 5", would you risk it?How can you be sure just how high your trailer is (if say you pick up an odd size trailer) and what leeway do you give yourself (ie 2" under the marked height?).
If the bridge was marked 14’6 and my truck was 14’6, I wouldn’t even slow down for it
I sometimes find myself following palletforce/palletways high tops up the M1, and it’s quite scary to see how near they seem to come to the old bridges going up towards Luton in particular! Looks like they’ve literally got less than an inch to spare, and the bridges in question have numerous scuff marks on them underneath!
Winseer:
I’ve always chickened out of taking a supermarket combination under this bridge. I’d rather be safe, and assume the sign is accurate, rather than listen to those that would argue “There’s always a few inches of spare clearance you know!”
We always used to take roadrailers on stepframe plant trailers under that bridge at Tulse Hill. They were bang on 14ft and although I always slowed there was around 6 inches of clearance.
I was told by one of our night drivers but never wanted to chance it. Came through there at stupid o’ clock one night and thought id give it a try. Used to get one strange looks heading for it though.
Cheers
Neilf
You can go down that side road “diversion” with the speed bumps during the day, but I dunno what you do coming the other way… Luckily for me, I usually have a second drop somewhere like Streatham, and end up leaving London area via the A23, so don’t come back that way.
I would imagine indeed if you tried the “approach on crawler” during peak hours, you’d get a bit more than a few raised eyebrows!
Technically speaking, if VOSA pulled you whilst doing that, and found no height indicator (or one set to the wrong height!) in the cab, you’d get done! They’d not be pulling you if you were not acting in an “unsure” manner…
Used to go under a 14’6 with a 14’8 trailer quite regularly. But no longer, i’m a good boy now.
Took a 15ft 6 trailer under a 15ft 6 bridge six times a day for years. About 4 inces clearance.
We did slow down first time just incase. 
I taken a 14ft 9 trailer underneath a 14ft 6 bridge in Princes Risborough and I’ve taken the same 14ft 9 trailer underneath a 14ft 6 bridge in Romsey. Wouldn’t do it again though.
Winseer:
waynedl:
Tarrman:
If a bridge was marked at say 14ft 6" and your lorry was 14ft 5", would you risk it?How can you be sure just how high your trailer is (if say you pick up an odd size trailer) and what leeway do you give yourself (ie 2" under the marked height?).
If the bridge was marked 14’6 and my truck was 14’6, I wouldn’t even slow down for it
I sometimes find myself following palletforce/palletways high tops up the M1, and it’s quite scary to see how near they seem to come to the old bridges going up towards Luton in particular! Looks like they’ve literally got less than an inch to spare, and the bridges in question have numerous scuff marks on them underneath!
I know the exact bridge you mean as well, it’s very very close and no way that bridge is 16ft 6 as it should be.
When I used to trunk and go up the M1 I always used to duck going under it 
I went to crown relocatons near northolt with a high cube 14ft6 bridge meet 14ft6 trailer very close all the car drivers stoped to see if I could do and did