Warning signs for low out of use railway bridges

[whole diary]

[BerkshireBugsy]

All, this question came up because of a post in a Facebook group about railway lines which are no longer in use

Where there is a low railway bridge which crosses a roadway who is responsible for the traffic warning signs such as "maximum height" etc? Is it the highways agency ?

In this case my understanding is that the rail track is no longer present so when I say "no longer in use" I really mean it

[grahame]

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/350114/network-rail-bridge-strike-protocol.pdf

Good luck 

[paul7575]

The Highways Agency is in general only responsible for the motorway and trunk road network, I think the general responsibility for the actual signage lies with the local 'Highways Authority', so the local county, district or unitary authority as applicable.

What has changed in recent years is that the structural safety of some road overbridges that carried unused rail formations would have been the responsibility of the British Railways Board (Residuary) - i.e. the part of the BR^▸ (British Rail(ways)) estate that was not transferred to Railtrack, subsequently Network Rail.

When BRBR was wound up in 2013 a new separate Highways Agency offshoot was established to deal with what is known as the 'burdensome estate' defined as "This includes legacy bridges, abutments, tunnels, cuttings, viaducts and similar properties associated with closed railway lines..."  They are known as Highways Agency Historical Railways Estate; and based in York

AIUI^▸ (as I understand it) they are effectively the maintainer of such infrastructure, but the local highways authority would be responsible for the bridge havignthe appropriate traffic signs in place.

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/brb-residuary-ltd-has-been-abolished

Paul

[BerkshireBugsy]

Many thanks for your answers guys (as always)

[ellendune]

From 1st April the Highways Agency is now a Government owned company called Highways England.

Since neither they, nor the Highways Agency were responsible for motorways and trunk roads in Scotland or Wales - do they do the historic railways stuff only in England?

[Tim]

From 1st April the Highways Agency is now a Government owned company called Highways England.

Since neither they, nor the Highways Agency were responsible for motorways and trunk roads in Scotland or Wales - do they do the historic railways stuff only in England?

my understanding is that they have the Welsh and Scottish stuff previously owned by BRB^‡(resolve)(R).  Their name is therefore a slight misnomer.