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Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
25.6.2025 (Wednesday) 10:38 - All running AOK
 
Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by stuving at 22:24, 5th November 2020
 
Having seen pics from the other side, it?s merely grazed it?s way in. Let some air out the tyres and reverse it out. I?m sure there is reasons why they can?t do that

Why? All you can tell from that picture is that no-one had done that (or anything else) to remove it when it was pictured. According to the County Gazette:
Staff are letting down tyres to see if they can move the double decker coach.

THE coach has now been removed from under the bridge.

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by LiskeardRich at 22:18, 5th November 2020
 
Bringing back one (or perhaps two) old favourites - from Facebook this morning




Having seen pics from the other side, it?s merely grazed it?s way in. Let some air out the tyres and reverse it out. I?m sure there is reasons why they can?t do that

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by Bmblbzzz at 13:42, 5th November 2020
 
Failure of signage to some extent. You'd reasonably expect that if the vehicle fits under the first sign (the yellow and black stripes) it would fit under the rest of the bridge. Not, of course, that you should rely on this.

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by grahame at 12:32, 5th November 2020
 
Bringing back one (or perhaps two) old favourites - from Facebook this morning




Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by TonyK at 18:52, 21st December 2017
 
The tweet from the Fire Service is good too:

Double decker v bridge. Bridge wins.

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by patch38 at 14:00, 21st December 2017
 
The ad on the side of the bus seems splendidly ironic.

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by grahame at 13:51, 21st December 2017
 
And another:  http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-birmingham-42435613

The roof of a double-decker bus was torn off when it passed under a low railway bridge.
The top of the vehicle was "completely removed" when it went through the tunnel in Bournville Lane, Birmingham, according to a paramedic who attended.
Photos show extensive damage to the National Express West Midlands bus, which was out of service at the time.
No passengers were on board and the driver, in his 30s, was not injured.

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by Chris from Nailsea at 19:44, 18th September 2017
 
From the BBC:

Driver charged over Edinburgh hospital bus crash



The 21-year-old driver of a double-decker bus that crashed at an Edinburgh hospital, injuring eight people, has been charged with dangerous driving.

The roof of the bus was ripped off by an overhead walkway at the Western General Hospital on Sunday afternoon.

Six of the injured, men and women aged between 14 and 60, were taken to Edinburgh Royal Infirmary for treatment.

None of the injuries was thought to be life-threatening.

Police Scotland said the road was reopened on Sunday evening and a report would be submitted to the procurator fiscal.



Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by grahame at 17:43, 22nd October 2016
 
It also appears to be a 'party bus' rather than a service bus so possible that the driver was unfamiliar with the route, not that that is really any excuse of course.

Looking at their web site, it does appear that this conversion was an "unforeseen circumstance" ...

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by chrisr_75 at 17:30, 22nd October 2016
 
It also appears to be a 'party bus' rather than a service bus so possible that the driver was unfamiliar with the route, not that that is really any excuse of course.

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by Chris from Nailsea at 16:17, 22nd October 2016
 
Thanks for posting a link to that latest one, SandTEngineer. 

Yes, that one does seem to have been rather more serious in its impact than most.  To quote that BBC news item in full:

Bus hits bridge in Tottenham, injuring 26 people



Five people have been taken to hospital and a further 21 injured after the roof of a bus was ripped off when it hit a railway bridge in north London.

Firefighters rescued three people who were trapped on the top deck after the roof was torn off in the crash on St Loys Road, Tottenham.

Emergency services were called at 04:05 BST. None of the injuries is believed to be life-threatening.

The vehicle appeared to be being used by a party bus company, Vault London.

The company hires out double-decker buses for private events with on-board cocktail bars and DJ booths. No-one from Vault London was available for comment.

Network Rail has declared the bridge safe, a spokesman for London Fire Brigade said. Scotland Yard said it was continuing to investigate the incident.









Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by SandTEngineer at 11:08, 22nd October 2016
 
Another one earlier today (22/10/2016): http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-37738633

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by grahame at 22:11, 4th October 2016
 
From the Daily Mail

Room for one more on top! Rail replacement bus loses its roof after driver tries to go under low bridge

Relieved to see people have only suffered shock and minor injuries.  Bus and bridge damage rather more. They'll now need a rail replacement bus replacement

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by LiskeardRich at 13:02, 26th September 2016
 
A driver friend says this Trident is 14'6!

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by Fourbee at 11:53, 26th September 2016
 
Depending on the variant I think the minimum height of a trident is 4.1m. That bridge is marked as 4.0m (plus "slack" which obviously was just insufficient).

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by LiskeardRich at 10:08, 26th September 2016
 
A First Kernow Trident hit the 13'3 bridge by Bodmin College this morning. The road on which is on a diversionary route for all the road closures around Bodmin at the moment. The bus was I believe running empty to start a Truro College route.

http://www.westbriton.co.uk/traffic-chaos-has-ensued-on-a-busy-road-in-bodmin-after-a-double-decker-bus-hit-a-bridge/story-29750651-detail/story.html

Traffic chaos has ensued on a busy road in Bodmin this rush-hour after a double-decker bus hit a bridge. The bus became wedged under the railway bridge on Launceston Road, where roadworks are currently underway.
The bus, which was heading in the direction of the town centre at around 7.30am, is operated by FirstGroup. It was heading to Truro College, which tweeted that the service has been delayed.

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by stuving at 20:56, 10th September 2016
 
The bridge is skew - at more than 45 degrees. The road wide, and on a hill, so that the "up" side of the bridge is over 10 m further uphill than the other side. A slope of 1 in 20 (with the road level across its width) is more than enough for the clearance to be over 5.03 m (or 16'6") on the downhill side and so not need signing.

Which is likely to confuse unobservant drivers who go under it downhill and so assume they can come back the same way.

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by LiskeardRich at 20:55, 10th September 2016
 
It does appear the street view url is too long, it's cut a bit off of each. I don't think it's lower on one side. Any bridge under 16'3 needs a sign definitely not 1'3 lower on the downhill side.

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by Surrey 455 at 20:52, 10th September 2016
 
Royal Mail truck got stuck under the bridge at Plymouth station today.



I looked on Google Streetview, and cant see a height sign present from one direction


I too looked at Streetview and the approach to the bridge. The view seen was in 2015. You can go back to various years up to 2008, which also seem to be missing a warning sign. However comparing the photo to Streetview I can see that the lorry approached with the warning sign in view. Is the road lower on one side?

Incidentally your links to Streetview fail. Is the URL too long?

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by LiskeardRich at 20:11, 10th September 2016
 
Royal Mail truck got stuck under the bridge at Plymouth station today.


It looks like a Royal Mail lorry driver's made a first class error after apparently becoming stuck under a bridge.

The huge red lorry appears to be firmly wedged under a railway bridge on Pennycomequick Hill on the A386 - near to Plymouth Train Station.



Alex Holmes tweeted this picture from the scene this evening. It's one of the major routes into the city centre.

I looked on Google Streetview, and cant see a height sign present from one direction

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@50.3771258,-4.1457549,3a,75y,321.87h,87.05t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s6HIzWBxnE9VNKTpRk22YTQ!2e0!7i13312!8i6656!6m1!1e1

From the other direction a 15'0 sign
https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@50.3773128,-4.1465467,3a,75y,145.4h,110.82t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s44VvZia3ibER8YB02YpwpQ!2e0!7i13312!8i6656!6m1!1e1

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by LiskeardRich at 15:46, 2nd September 2016
 
Another with a difference.... Not sure how a to link to a Facebook seen on a mobile app, but bbc spotlight have photo on their Facebook.
A caravan has hit the 7'6 bridge in Totnes. The drivers excuse was he was looking at his satnav and missed the signs. I only imagine that to be a confession to driving without attention.
Good news for other motorists, the caravan is destroyed so one less to clog up the M5 later this week!

Photo credit Devon and Cornwall police

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by ray951 at 12:23, 8th July 2016
 
Sorry, this is slightly off topic but I couldn't resist posting this:

http://cars.aol.co.uk/2016/07/08/residents-capture-hilarious-moment-bus-gets-stuck-in-street/

Strange how the name of the coach company is blanked in the photo but not the video.

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by trainer at 11:51, 7th July 2016
 
I assume the driver was on route P45. 

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by Chris from Nailsea at 22:07, 6th July 2016
 
From the BBC:

Roof ripped off bus in Middleton railway bridge smash


The bus was out of service and no passengers were on board

The roof of a double-decker bus was ripped off when it crashed into a railway bridge.

The Stagecoach bus was returning to depot when it collided with the bridge in Joshua Lane, Middleton, Greater Manchester, at about 19:00 BST on Tuesday.

No passengers on board and the driver was uninjured.

Greater Manchester Police tweeted a picture with the caption: "Big recover bill and 1 less bus on the roads".

The force later tweeted: "Luckily no one was on the top deck and no one hurt."

Stagecoach confirmed the bus was out of service and the company was assisting police with inquiries.

It is also carrying out its own investigation.

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by Chris from Nailsea at 10:45, 14th April 2016
 
From the BBC:

Bus loses roof in Bournemouth bridge crash


The bus kept going for about 30m after its roof was taken off

The roof of a double decker bus carrying overseas students was sliced off while going under a railway bridge in Bournemouth.

Two 13-year old girls received minor injuries as the roof came off when the unmarked bus travelled under the bridge at Clingan Road shortly before 08:30 BST.

BBC Reporter Emily Hudson described "a mangled wreckage" under the bridge.

Rail services between Bournemouth and Brockenhurst have been suspended.


The bus was carrying overseas students who were studying in Bournemouth

______________________________________

At the scene: BBC Radio Solent reporter Emily Hudson

The bus kept going at least 30 metres before coming to a halt and is now surrounded by a large cordon.

The complete top of the bus has come off, with the wreckage lying in the road.

It appears the children had the sense to duck - it is a miracle no-one was more seriously hurt.

A lot of children saw what happened and there are a lot of distressed faces in the playground.

_______________________________________

The bus was carrying overseas students from an English language school in the town. They were taken into a nearby junior school where they were given first aid by staff.

A South Western Ambulance spokesman said one girl was treated for a hand injury and another suffered minor head and facial injuries.

Road closures are in place and rail engineers are assessing the bridge.

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by GBM at 11:07, 13th September 2015
 
Scraped mirrors though I assume to be a daily occurrence. On my Ride Cornwall outing on Friday, 2 different buses of the 8 I travelled on scraped their mirrors on hedges, resulting in the driver having to get out and adjust his mirror at the next stop.

Quite a few mirrors are not that tight, so even the slightest touch with shrubbery will result in a folded mirror.
On some runs (such as the 1;1A;300/17B) you are frequently hedge-hopping to avoid oncoming traffic.  Likewise the odd panel damage will happen when trying to pass another large vehicle in a narrow confine.
Panel damage will result in the inevitable "investigation" and awarding of points.




Edit note: Quote marks fixed, for clarity. CfN.

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by LiskeardRich at 22:10, 12th September 2015
 
The firm said she also had "a minor incident involving a scraped mirror" since starting her role in June

Spatial awareness isn't her strong point then! 

Scraped mirrors though I assume to be a daily occurrence. On my Ride Cornwall outing on Friday, 2 different buses of the 8 I travelled on scraped their mirrors on hedges, resulting in the driver having to get out and adjust his mirror at the next stop.


Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by Chris from Nailsea at 21:52, 12th September 2015
 
An update on the latest incident, from the BBC:

Rochdale bus crash: Driver is 'relieved of duties'



The driver of a bus in which 17 people were injured when it went under a bridge and ripped off the roof, has been "relieved of her duties".

The double-decker crashed into a railway bridge in Rochdale, Greater Manchester, on Wednesday.

First Bus said it was the driver's second incident since June but denied reports she had been suspended.

The firm and Greater Manchester Police are currently conducting separate investigations.

A First Bus spokesman said the driver had been "relieved from duty" during its inquiries and Wednesday's incident was currently not a disciplinary matter. "She suffered shock. On safety grounds we wouldn't expect the driver to get back behind the wheel at the moment. And we wouldn't expect her to work while an investigation is on going," he added.

The firm said she also had "a minor incident involving a scraped mirror" since starting her role in June.

One man suffered a broken jaw and a woman was taken to hospital with serious facial injuries after the vehicle crashed on Milkstone Road shortly before 12:30 BST.

The number 17 bus was about half-a-mile away from its usual route between Manchester and Rochdale.

Twenty-five people were on board and managed to get off the vehicle.

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by grahame at 20:41, 9th September 2015
 
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-34198572

Rochdale bus crash: Seventeen hurt as roof shears off

A double-decker bus has crashed into a railway bridge in Rochdale, shearing off the roof and injuring 17 people.
The incident happened in Milkstone Road shortly before 12:30 BST. Fourteen ambulances were sent to the scene.
One man in his 20s suffered a broken jaw and a woman was taken to hospital with serious facial injuries.
Twenty-five people were on board and managed to get off the vehicle, which was not on its usual route. The bus company has launched an investigation.

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by TonyK at 14:46, 10th August 2015
 

That is a politically incorrect statement.   But I chuckled ...

Do you recall the closing part of an episode of "Alas Smith and Jones"? The late great Mel Smith says "In next week's programme, "Is political correctness dead?" We ask a leading poof."

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by LiskeardRich at 22:27, 4th August 2015
 
From the Evening Standard:







"Everyone was standing up and seemed rather okay. A few people were hugging and consoling each other.


Every cloud has a silver lining, I suppose. Pass me the pretty one...

This one was already open top, albeit with half a roof.

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by JayMac at 20:27, 4th August 2015
 
Did she join the forum? 

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by grahame at 16:41, 4th August 2015
 
Every cloud has a silver lining, I suppose. Pass me the pretty one...

That is a politically incorrect statement.   But I chuckled ... it reminded me of the time I flew from Mexico City to Gatport overnight.

Mexico City airline terminal was a dimly lit and dingy building, and crowds were gathering - mainly large gentlemen in crumpled suits who looked like they'd done a day in the office already and were heading for the red-eye.   And there was one - beautiful - siren in amongst them, wearing shorts so short that you felt she would be cold as soon as she left the terminal at Gatwick.   And I wondered "who's lucky enough to be sitting next to her".

That flight was fascinating - I ended up discussing the ranking - formal and informal - of members of communities on social media sites such as ours, and how there's rule and guidelines and special case.   Talk too of moderation and admin, and a great deal of food for thought.  I learned a lot that night.  And I was sorry to say "goodbye" to her as we left the plane.

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by TonyK at 15:14, 4th August 2015
 
From the Evening Standard:







"Everyone was standing up and seemed rather okay. A few people were hugging and consoling each other.


Every cloud has a silver lining, I suppose. Pass me the pretty one...

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by JayMac at 06:48, 4th August 2015
 
From the Evening Standard:

London bus crash: Roof ripped off packed tourist bus after it crashes into tree in Bloomsbury



The roof of a packed tourist bus was ripped off when it crashed into a tree in central London this afternoon.

Four people were taken to hospital after the cover of the bus - which had been partly open-topped - was wiped out by an overhanging branch.

Passengers were left sitting in the packed top deck with the detached roof resting up against the side after the collision in Bloomsbury.

London Ambulance Service said nine people were treated and four taken to hospital following the accident in Woburn Place, close to Russell Square Tube station.

The London Fire Brigade was forced to lift one passenger out of the upper deck.



Craig Douglas, 28, said passengers were "hugging and consoling" each other after their "miraculous" escape.

The salesman from Essex, who witnessed the aftermath, said: "The roof was hanging off even though the branch really did not look big enough to do it; I don't know how it happened.

"Everyone was standing up and seemed rather okay. A few people were hugging and consoling each other.

"It looked miraculous that everyone got away, the whole roof was off and there was glass all over the floor."

The London Fire Brigade said crews were called at 1.12pm.

A spokesman said: "Firefighters were called to Woburn Place in Bloomsbury after a tourist bus collided with the overhanging branch of a tree.

"The impact removed the roof of the bus. Four people were taken to hospital and around 40 other uninjured passengers were looked after by police and LAS staff in a nearby building."

A spokesman for LAS said: "We sent a number of resources to the scene including the hazardous area response team, a cycle responder, an advanced paramedic practitioner and London^s Air Ambulance to the scene.

"We treated nine patients in total, and we took four people to hospital."

The tour bus company has been contacted for a comment.

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by stuving at 17:44, 27th July 2015
 
I wonder what the railway solution to this would be as opposed to the laissez faire attitude of the DfT Roads Executive.

It would be for the local (traffic) authority to actually do anything. I wonder, would they need further legal powers to build something intended to cause damage to vehicles? I imagine a bridge owner (such as a railway) might in theory erect something, but would rarely own enough land to the side of the bridge.

In the Lille case what I so elegantly described as "dangly things" look like this (courtesy Street View). I imagine they bang on the roof like a troupe of Japanese drummers, which should have worked for a coach. For a large van (which is mostly what gets stuck there) the cab may be below the limit, so they would be drumming on the load body - perhaps that is one limit of passive measures, together with whyever this coach got past it.

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by onthecushions at 13:37, 27th July 2015
 

I wonder what the railway solution to this would be as opposed to the laissez faire attitude of the DfT Roads Executive.

Infra-red beam height detection linked to traffic signals with sufficient overlap to brake to a stop?

Adding the cost to bus fares?

I do admire bus drivers' skill at navigating the latest 11m monsters around modern road systems.

OTC

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by stuving at 08:29, 27th July 2015
 
This one, from Euronews, is a bit further afield:

Coach has its roof sheared off in low tunnel near Lille
27/07 00:41 CET

More than 30 people have been injured, six of them seriously, after a coach carrying Spanish students had its roof sheared off as it crashed into a low tunnel in northern France.

The incident happened at 5.30 Sunday morning at La Madeleine near Lille.

The injured were taken to hospital.

One student who had only been slightly injured described what happened:

^I was sleeping, I was with eyes closed. I suddenly heard a lot of sound and it smelled like smoke, and glass is broken, everywhere, people bleeding ^ a disaster.^

Dr. Fran^ois Ducrocq, who attended the accident said the crash had obviously been ^incredibly violent in nature^ and had a happened when the majority of passengers had been asleep.

The coach with 59 people on board had been en route from Bilbao to Amsterdam.
Some reports say the driver was following the vehicles GPS directions and apparently failed to see the signs showing the maximum height of the tunnel.

Those uninjured were taken to a sports centre in La Madeleine while arrangements were made for their return.

That report contains a video; here is a still from La Voix du Nord (one of a set of many)


This is also unusual in that it was not a double decker to start with. I guess it's fortunate it was at night, so no-one was sitting up straight.

The site is the first of a series of "minitunnels" on the main road from Lille to Roubaix and Turcoing; they are a local speciality. You may know the road, it's the one the trams run along. From other reports the drivers were familiar with the route, and the portal with warning dangly things on it was in place - having been demolished (the whole portal, that is) more than once recently by seriously oversize trucks.

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by LiskeardRich at 18:45, 22nd July 2015
 
Not a bus but an artic truck had a open top conversion yesterday on the A3047 at Scorrier just outside Redruth yesterday.
The entire body of the trailer came off.

Haven't seen news article yet. There has been 3 bridge strikes at this location in recent months having heard nothing in many years.

The signs indicate in imperial only 15'3. (4.6482m). The lorry was reportedly measured by police as 4.6 metres high. (I've heard this from a local lorry driver known to me, seen nothing official reported)

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by Chris from Nailsea at 19:32, 19th July 2015
 
Oh, the irony ... detached roof of bus ends up behind the sign warning that there was no way a double-decker would be able to pass under it:



 

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by Surrey 455 at 09:32, 19th July 2015
 
Another conversion in Norwood, South London yesterday.

http://www.itv.com/news/2015-07-19/pictures-top-of-a-bus-sliced-off-as-it-crashes-into-bridge/

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by Chris from Nailsea at 20:53, 19th April 2015
 
Open top down a dual carriageway sounds a great choice!

Indeed! 

However, purely to make it easier for those of our readers using mobile devices, could we please not use a generic 'reply with quote', whenever possible - particularly when those previous posts include images?

Thanks, CfN. 

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by LiskeardRich at 20:41, 19th April 2015
 
From the BBC:

A double-decker bus struck a tree and lost its roof in Bristol injuring 18 people, seven of whom were taken to hospital.

Crews were called to Fishponds Road following the accident involving the 342 service just after 07:40 BST.

Great Western Ambulance Service said those injured mainly had head injuries, but none was seriously hurt.

The busy road was closed for several hours but reopened just before 12:00 BST.

Operator First Bus confirmed one of its fleet had been involved in the incident.



'Loud bang'

"The top of the double-decker bus was in collision with some tree branches which were hanging over the road," a First Bus spokeswoman said. "The bus was in service at the time, with a number of passengers on board. Our teams are on the scene and are working with the relevant authorities to determine exactly what has happened. Our thoughts are currently with those people who were on the bus at the time of the incident and their friends and family."

Jonathan Pomeyie, who lives nearby, said he had been at the back of his house making a cup of tea when he heard a loud bang.

"It was a very deep impact type of sound, like an explosion. At first I wasn't too sure what it was. I [later] got a phone call from one of my friends who said there had been a bus accident so I looked out of a window to see if there were any delays to the traffic. I saw police, paramedics and firemen everywhere. It was a horrid and unbelievable sight to wake up to."



In the interests of continuity, this one now looks like this, and lives in Cornwall. It is intended for the new Falmouth Open Top service. Seen at Penzance running day.

V124LGC by Rich.W., on Flickr


We had that bus back to Camborne this evening oh why oh why did I sit up top lol I'm still trying to warm up now!

Open top down a dual carriageway sounds a great choice!

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by Palfers at 20:36, 19th April 2015
 
From the BBC:

A double-decker bus struck a tree and lost its roof in Bristol injuring 18 people, seven of whom were taken to hospital.

Crews were called to Fishponds Road following the accident involving the 342 service just after 07:40 BST.

Great Western Ambulance Service said those injured mainly had head injuries, but none was seriously hurt.

The busy road was closed for several hours but reopened just before 12:00 BST.

Operator First Bus confirmed one of its fleet had been involved in the incident.



'Loud bang'

"The top of the double-decker bus was in collision with some tree branches which were hanging over the road," a First Bus spokeswoman said. "The bus was in service at the time, with a number of passengers on board. Our teams are on the scene and are working with the relevant authorities to determine exactly what has happened. Our thoughts are currently with those people who were on the bus at the time of the incident and their friends and family."

Jonathan Pomeyie, who lives nearby, said he had been at the back of his house making a cup of tea when he heard a loud bang.

"It was a very deep impact type of sound, like an explosion. At first I wasn't too sure what it was. I [later] got a phone call from one of my friends who said there had been a bus accident so I looked out of a window to see if there were any delays to the traffic. I saw police, paramedics and firemen everywhere. It was a horrid and unbelievable sight to wake up to."



In the interests of continuity, this one now looks like this, and lives in Cornwall. It is intended for the new Falmouth Open Top service. Seen at Penzance running day.

V124LGC by Rich.W., on Flickr


We had that bus back to Camborne this evening oh why oh why did I sit up top lol I'm still trying to warm up now!

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by LiskeardRich at 20:26, 19th April 2015
 
From the BBC:

A double-decker bus struck a tree and lost its roof in Bristol injuring 18 people, seven of whom were taken to hospital.

Crews were called to Fishponds Road following the accident involving the 342 service just after 07:40 BST.

Great Western Ambulance Service said those injured mainly had head injuries, but none was seriously hurt.

The busy road was closed for several hours but reopened just before 12:00 BST.

Operator First Bus confirmed one of its fleet had been involved in the incident.



'Loud bang'

"The top of the double-decker bus was in collision with some tree branches which were hanging over the road," a First Bus spokeswoman said. "The bus was in service at the time, with a number of passengers on board. Our teams are on the scene and are working with the relevant authorities to determine exactly what has happened. Our thoughts are currently with those people who were on the bus at the time of the incident and their friends and family."

Jonathan Pomeyie, who lives nearby, said he had been at the back of his house making a cup of tea when he heard a loud bang.

"It was a very deep impact type of sound, like an explosion. At first I wasn't too sure what it was. I [later] got a phone call from one of my friends who said there had been a bus accident so I looked out of a window to see if there were any delays to the traffic. I saw police, paramedics and firemen everywhere. It was a horrid and unbelievable sight to wake up to."



In the interests of continuity, this one now looks like this, and lives in Cornwall. It is intended for the new Falmouth Open Top service. Seen at Penzance running day.

V124LGC by Rich.W., on Flickr

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by TonyK at 23:12, 27th March 2015
 

Not the first time UKIP have had problems with modes of transport.  Remember Election Day 2010?  http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/northamptonshire/8664260.stm

The report suggests, to me, pilot error as the primary cause. There is no reason to think that the type of aircraft was at fault - Polish Wilgas are robust and simple. The irony doesn't escape me.

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by Chris from Nailsea at 22:18, 27th March 2015
 
From the BBC:

Roof ripped off Thorpe Park-bound school trip bus


The double-decker had been carrying 76 pupils on an end-of-term theme park trip

Eleven passengers have been taken to hospital after the top deck of a school bus was ripped off when it hit a railway bridge.

The double-decker had been carrying 76 pupils on an end-of-term theme park trip when it reportedly took a wrong turn in Staines, Surrey. It had been due to take the children to Thorpe Park, in Chertsey, when it crashed about two miles away.

None of the children on board the bus were seriously injured. However, South East Coast Ambulance Service reported one person with a suspected back injury and a further 10 with minor injuries were taken to local hospitals. A further 58 passengers were assessed and treated at the scene.

The bus had been carrying pupils from St John's School in Epping, Essex. A statement on the school's website said the trip had been a reward for pupils awarded a high number of house points.


The roof of the bus was left on the road behind the bridge

"We have spoken to a number of staff and we are able to confirm that there are no serious injuries although some students may have suffered some cuts and bruises," it said.

Reports of the crash, at the junction of Riverside Drive and Chertsey Lane, were first received just after 10:00 GMT, The road is expected to remain closed for a significant period of time and motorists have been advised to avoid the area if possible.

Bus owner Galleon Travel said it was arranging for return travel to the school for some children, while some parents had already collected pupils.


Surrey Police said the road was expected to be closed for some time


Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by GBM at 07:07, 15th March 2015
 
My thoughts with the driver, and the subsequent inquiry. There but for the grace...........

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by LiskeardRich at 22:42, 14th March 2015
 
next!

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/london-doubledecker-bus-has-entire-roof-ripped-off-by-railway-bridge-10108592.html

Noting that it's hardly obvious from the bridge (in the background of the photos) that it's low  !!

It looks like it may be tight for a single decker.

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by grahame at 21:41, 14th March 2015
 
next!

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/london-doubledecker-bus-has-entire-roof-ripped-off-by-railway-bridge-10108592.html

Noting that it's hardly obvious from the bridge (in the background of the photos) that it's low  !!

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by Brucey at 20:11, 2nd February 2015
 
Another conversion, this time in Central London.
London bus roof torn off after it hits trees

The roof of a bus has been ripped off after it hit overhanging trees in central London.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-31097083

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by broadgage at 19:24, 2nd February 2015
 
Indeed, and IIRC there are a number of similar signs on each side of the road. Before moving from London I frequently used buses along that road. I never went upstairs having observed numerous very near misses and several busses striking trees, though with less dramatic consequences than this time.

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by LiskeardRich at 18:41, 2nd February 2015
 
High on the suspension, or even over inflated tyres.

The clearance sign says 13'9. A standard height Plaxton President is 14'6, A Low height is 13'9 apparently so a low height should scrape through

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by JayMac at 17:25, 2nd February 2015
 
From the Somerset County Gazette:

A BUS got stuck under the bridge near Taunton Railway Station this morning.



Mike Hollin took this picture of the stricken Buses of Somerset number 21 bus shortly before 7am.

According to reports from passers-by, the driver managed to free the vehicle a short time later.

Believe it or not, it^s not the first time this has happened ^ see here.

Most types of double decker will clear this bridge in Taunton, but not this particular Plaxton President bodied Dennis Trident. Which is a little strange as there are plenty of pictures online of similar Plaxton President buses on route 21. Here's the exact same bus on the same route earlier this year:

https://www.flickr.com/photos/93223521@N04/15157478146/

Riding too high on the adjustable air suspension perhaps?

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by chrisr_75 at 16:59, 2nd February 2015
 
Very good job of cleanly slicing the roof off and also very lucky no-one was seriously hurt.

The road sign in the first photo clearly states 'overhanging trees 2.5m'. I suspect the bus driver will be looking for a new job...

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by JayMac at 16:08, 2nd February 2015
 
From the BBC:

The bus was on Kingsway when it hit the overhanging branches

The roof of a bus has been ripped off after it hit overhanging trees in central London.

The number 91 bus hit the trees on Kingsway, near the London School of Economics (LSE) building, in Holborn.

London Ambulance Service said two people were taken to hospital with facial injuries. Two others were treated for minor injuries.

Kingsway has been closed between the Great Queen Street and A4 Aldwych junctions.


At the scene, London Fire Brigade station manager, Gary Squires, said: "Those involved were very lucky to escape serious injury."

LSE student Ethan Meade said he turned around when he heard a crash.

"I saw the roof fall down off the side of the bus and the glass shatter everywhere.

"The passengers seemed to be sitting there pretty stunned, as you'd expect. Police seemed to handle it very well."

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by Chris from Nailsea at 22:07, 28th April 2014
 
I believe there are EU regs concerning double-decker buses.  I wonder if any of the hirers had access to them?

Ooh, mischievous! 

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by bobm at 22:05, 28th April 2014
 
And another one out of gauge ... this time colliding with a railway station

http://metro.co.uk/2014/04/28/ukip-campaign-bus-collides-with-portsmouth-station-as-party-begins-election-campaign-4711694/?

Not the first time UKIP have had problems with modes of transport.  Remember Election Day 2010?  http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/northamptonshire/8664260.stm

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by trainer at 22:01, 28th April 2014
 
And another one out of gauge ... this time colliding with a railway station

http://metro.co.uk/2014/04/28/ukip-campaign-bus-collides-with-portsmouth-station-as-party-begins-election-campaign-4711694/?

I believe there are EU regs concerning double-decker buses.  I wonder if any of the hirers had access to them?

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by grahame at 20:29, 28th April 2014
 
And another one out of gauge ... this time colliding with a railway station

http://metro.co.uk/2014/04/28/ukip-campaign-bus-collides-with-portsmouth-station-as-party-begins-election-campaign-4711694/?

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by stuving at 19:58, 17th March 2014
 
I assume they missed the word "not"

Apparently so - or maybe the middle got left out of the sentence in haste. There's now an expanded version of the Gloucester Echo piece (same link). The bus was running empty to Bishop Cleeve for a school run, and Ms T was waiting for another bus.

Credit is due at least for choosing a time when there were no passengers on board.

I rather liked this bit of the new text:

Residents in the area said that it was quite a common experience to hear vehicles strike the bridge.

Jane Smith, who lives right next door to the bridge said: "I heard the bang this morning, but I didn't look out. I hear something hitting the bridge all the time, and I just think "there's another one." It's not a rare occurrence at all."^


Are you paying enough attention, CfN?


(Edit by FT,N! to correct punctuation only)

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by Chris from Nailsea at 19:27, 17th March 2014
 
Further pictures of the latest incident, from the BBC:

Cheltenham bus roof ripped off in bridge crash


The crash on Hyde Lane happened at 07:10 GMT

A double-decker bus has had its roof completely ripped off after being driven under a bridge in Cheltenham.

No passengers were on board the vehicle and the driver escaped uninjured from the crash which happened at 07:10 GMT.

As a result, Hyde Lane has been shut in both directions and will remain closed until debris has been cleared away.

The bus operator Swanbrook runs several services throughout the county, including commercial ventures and special services for schools.


There were no passengers on board the Swanbrook bus

On the Chris from Nailsea scale of points awarded for neatness and completeness, I think this merits an eight out of ten: the rear panel being left attached has unfortunately rather spoiled the artistic impression of the work. 

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by grahame at 19:11, 17th March 2014
 
Likewise, you shouldn't talk about "bus shelters" - they are of course "bus passenger shelters".

Yes, this is a bus shelter (with a bus or two in it!) ...



Thanks to Matthew Black from London, UK - Reproduced under Creative Commons license.
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:London_General_buses_in_Stockwell_bus_garage,_July_2003.jpg

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by Worcester_Passenger at 18:53, 17th March 2014
 
Not at all stuving.  As a journalist (although never in local newspapers), I'm one of the first to criticise poor writing.  I was once chastised for putting out a story about an accident involving "a concrete lorry" when it should have been "a lorry carrying concrete". 
Likewise, you shouldn't talk about "bus shelters" - they are of course "bus passenger shelters".

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by LiskeardRich at 17:46, 17th March 2014
 
Isn't it odd how a short item like that can contain a whole miniature detective puzzle.

Take the final quote - "The bus driver said he forgot it was a single-decker."


I assume they missed the word "not"

However now it is a single decker!

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by chuffed at 14:13, 17th March 2014
 
The windows on the rear trailer are the correction position for eyes, while the blue bit of camouflage  reminds me of a prominent protuberant proboscis......

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by JayMac at 13:37, 17th March 2014
 
I was once chastised for putting out a story about an accident involving "a concrete lorry" when it should have been "a lorry carrying concrete".

Not one of these then?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bison_concrete_armoured_lorry

 

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by bobm at 12:23, 17th March 2014
 
Not at all stuving.  As a journalist (although never in local newspapers), I'm one of the first to criticise poor writing.  I was once chastised for putting out a story about an accident involving "a concrete lorry" when it should have been "a lorry carrying concrete". 

Meanwhile my monthly favourite is when journalists write "Inflation has gone up this month"... well yes it always will.  It is the rate of inflation we should be talking about.

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by stuving at 11:16, 17th March 2014
 
..and I was going to commend the Gloucestershire Echo for getting the story on line, with a picture, within an hour of it happening.   Perhaps I won't now.

In case you think I'm celebrating "let's be mean to local journalists week", I do realise that these operations work with pretty low staff levels, so they are expected not only to be quick but to churn out lots of the stuff. So if I say they obviously don't read what they have written, that's no more than a mild criticism. And it's nothing new, after all.

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by Red Squirrel at 10:44, 17th March 2014
 
Also, what's a 'brudge'? 

I'm not one to gear one, as the Speverant Rooner once said.

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by bobm at 10:10, 17th March 2014
 
..and I was going to commend the Gloucestershire Echo for getting the story on line, with a picture, within an hour of it happening.   Perhaps I won't now.

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by JayMac at 10:04, 17th March 2014
 
Also, what's a 'brudge'? 

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by stuving at 10:00, 17th March 2014
 
Isn't it odd how a short item like that can contain a whole miniature detective puzzle.

Take the final quote - "The bus driver said he forgot it was a single-decker." Of course that may be wrong, especially as it is a second-hand quote. But assuming the quote is right, "it" can't be the bus he was driving. If he was in the right bus but on the wrong road, he would not have said that. So, logically, he must have been in the wrong bus - "it" being the single-decker he should have driven. If the wrong bus was scheduled by someone else, again his words are inappropriate. So either he scheduled the buses as well as driving this one (not impossible in a small company like this) or he took the wrong one out of the yard!

Then consider the other quote - "I was standing waiting for the bus. I saw the bus come down and I thought he's not going to make it." Was she waiting for this bus, or another one? Her words are only natural as given if it was this bus, though they may have been "tidied up". There does not seem to be a Swanbrook route here, nor a bus stop just after the bridge - though, again, the on-line data on this could be wrong (e.g. out of date). But, excepting such errors, she was waiting for this contract bus (a school bus, probably) just after the bridge. But why was the bus empty? If it had already called at Swindon Village and was going to Bishop's Cleeve that makes no sense. So it must have really been going somewhere else, or for some other purpose. Or, if she was waiting for another bus but before the bridge, and saw it "come down" the road towards her, would she have said that?

Raises more questions than it answers, really.


Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by GBM at 08:39, 17th March 2014
 
Another one - this time near Cheltenham.

From the Gloucestershire Echo

Sympathy to all involved, but especially to the driver.
So easily done (especially in our part of the world), so many things to think about all the time, with constant distractions.
 

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by bobm at 08:27, 17th March 2014
 
Another one - this time near Cheltenham.

From the Gloucestershire Echo



A double decker bus has collided with a bridge in Hyde Lane, Cheltenham, this morning.
 
The road is blocked in both directions and police are on the scene.
 
The bridge is close to the junction with Wymans Lane and Church Road.
 
Philip Green, who lives in Hyde Lane, was walking his dog and was under the bridge when the accident happened.
 
The Swanbrook bus was driving from Swindon Village towards Bishop's Cleeve and it hit the brudge,
 
The top of the bus was sliced off in the crash.
 
Mr Greensaid: "It showered me with debris. It could have killed me. I've never walked so close to death. I escaped death by inches."
 
Mr Green was taken to hospital by paramedics.
 
There are two ambulance, two police cars at the scene and the road remains closed.
 
A shaken Harriet Tweddle, said: "I was standing waiting for the bus. I saw the bus come down and I thought he's not going to make it. There was a hell of a noise and I ran over to see if anyone was hurt.
 
"It was only the driver. He was shaken and rather embarrassed and I stayed with Philip."
 
Richard Webb, 23, said: "The bus driver said he forgot it was a single-decker."


Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by LiskeardRich at 10:54, 24th December 2013
 
I'd give that a seven out of ten.

This latest one just doesn't have the pure artistry of a complete removal of the roof in one piece: nor does it have the result of the upper floor seats all being left apparently unscathed.

For my favourite contender, to date, see http://www.firstgreatwestern.info/coffeeshop/index.php?topic=6748.msg132997#msg132997 



The link is going to a post in the middle of the Kearsney and Chelmsford posts, I'm assuming Chelmsford though as that looks pretty impressive and a tidy job done!

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by Chris from Nailsea at 03:30, 24th December 2013
 
I'd give that a seven out of ten.

This latest one just doesn't have the pure artistry of a complete removal of the roof in one piece: nor does it have the result of the upper floor seats all being left apparently unscathed.

For my favourite contender, to date, see http://www.firstgreatwestern.info/coffeeshop/index.php?topic=6748.msg132997#msg132997 


Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by JayMac at 17:16, 23rd December 2013
 
Accompanying picture from the BBC article:



That's a pretty comprehensive de-roofing.

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by Brucey at 16:07, 23rd December 2013
 
A London United bus will be finding it's way into tourist service rather soon.  From the BBC.
: BBC News
A bus has been damaged after taking a wrong turn and hitting a railway bridge in south-west London.

The 131 double-decker bus was out of service when the collision happened at 13:00 GMT on Coombe Road in Kingston.

Transport for London (TfL) said there were no passengers on board the bus and no reported injuries.

Alex Whitman, who saw the aftermath of the crash, said: "I was quite shocked. It's one of those things you don't expect to see."

Mike Weston, TfL's Director of Buses, said: "The bridge was not damaged and rail services are unaffected.

"There were no injuries and the incident will be fully investigated."

The road has been closed in both directions.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-25496956

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by Chris from Nailsea at 23:02, 21st October 2013
 
Another fairly neat job - this time from the St Albans & Harpenden Review:

Investigation underway into Harpenden railway bus crash



An investigation is underway after a double-decker bus crashed into a railway bridge in Harpenden this morning.

A spokesman for Uno confirmed they would be speaking to the driver as to why he was covering the wrong route, which caused the roof of the bus to be ripped off after it smashed into the railway bridge in Station Road at 8.30am this morning.

The bus has now been removed and the road has been reopened. There were no injuries as a result of the incident and the bus was empty at the time

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by Chris from Nailsea at 13:21, 24th August 2013
 
Details of two more incidents ... 

From the BBC:

Rail bridge rips top off school bus near Dalry


No children were on board when the incident took place

A school bus has had its roof ripped off after passing under a railway bridge in North Ayrshire. No school children were on board the double-decker when the incident took place on the A737, near Dalry, at about 07:35 on Thursday.

A spokeswoman for Police Scotland said the driver of the bus was not injured. She said the road was closed until 09:20 to allow for the damaged bus to be removed and a clean-up operation to be completed.

Also from the BBC:

Westbourne mechanic gets bus wedged under bridge


Yellow Buses said the vehicle was not using one of its usual routes

A mechanic has been suspended after taking a double-decker bus for a test drive and getting it wedged under a railway bridge.

Traffic had to be diverted for more than an hour while the tyres were deflated and the bus recovered, in Prince of Wales Road, Westbourne.

No passengers were on board and the driver was unhurt.

Yellow Buses said the vehicle was on a road test on Thursday and was not using one of its usual routes.

Jenni Wilkinson, head of marketing, said: "The bus involved was not in service. An engineer has been suspended while an internal investigation is carried out."

A structural engineer assessed the bridge but rail services were unaffected.

Michael Waylett, from Westbourne, spotted the bus as he walked past the scene. He said: "It's obviously a bit of a silly thing to do. It doesn't make any sense to bring it down there. It's not a bus route so I don't know what it was doing, so it now makes sense that it was on a road test."

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by Brucey at 17:30, 27th July 2013
 
Another open top bus conversion, this time in Stockport: http://news.sky.com/story/1121181/bus-roof-ripped-off-after-hitting-railway-bridge

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by Chris from Nailsea at 18:50, 17th May 2013
 
... or the fire service didn't want to show any commercial logo in their photo? 

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by devon_metro at 12:23, 17th May 2013
 
Nice to see an Alexander ALX400 Dennis Trident having been scalped for a change.

Makes a change from a Northern Counties Palatine Volvo Olympian. 

Can't quite fathom why the picture that accompanies the article has had the operator name/logo pixelated though. The BBC tell us it is Regal Busways. Why censor the image?

The image comes from the fire service, perhaps the bus company asked them to pixelate their logo?

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by JayMac at 01:21, 17th May 2013
 
Nice to see an Alexander ALX400 Dennis Trident having been scalped for a change.

Makes a change from a Northern Counties Palatine Volvo Olympian. 

Can't quite fathom why the picture that accompanies the article has had the operator name/logo pixelated though. The BBC tell us it is Regal Busways. Why censor the image?

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by Chris from Nailsea at 23:56, 16th May 2013
 
From the BBC:

Chelmsford bus has roof shorn off under bridge


The crash affected rail services which use the bridge

A double-decker bus had its roof completely shorn off when it hit a railway bridge in Essex.

The Regal Busways bus struck the bridge in Duke Street, Chelmsford, at 16:30 BST on Thursday.

Essex Police said officers attended, along with an ambulance, but nobody was injured. The road was closed for a time but opened shortly after.

Essex Fire and Rescue said its firefighters attended the scene but took no action.

Greater Anglia train services were disrupted for a short time but have since returned to normal.

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by JayMac at 22:44, 9th March 2013
 
The facts that the driver took a wrong turn and that the bus route under the bridge is operated by single deckers is enough evidence, as far as I'm concerned, that double deckers are too tall for that bridge.

I note that it is another Volvo Olympian with Northern Counties Palatine body that has been scalped. It's probably their ubiquity, but this bus type is over represented in the bridge bash statistics, if this thread is any indicator.

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by LiskeardRich at 21:53, 9th March 2013
 
From that picture doesnt look like he was only marginally too tall. Has the road been resurfaced lately, as that often catches drivers out of marginal vehicles, although signs legally have to show the maximum height as 6 inches less that the actual available.

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by Chris from Nailsea at 21:49, 9th March 2013
 
From the Dover Express:

Investigation launched after double-decker railway smash

Bus bosses are investigating after a double-decker smashed into a railway bridge last week.

A dog-walker who was half a mile away said he heard an "almighty crash" as the top deck crumpled outside Kearsney railway station.


DECKED: A bus has its top knocked off after crashing into a rail bridge Picture by Stephen Davies

Police were called to deal with the ensuing traffic chaos as the Alkham Valley Road was closed during Thursday morning rush hour.

Stephen Davies was walking his lurcher, Gracie, in Kearsney Abbey at around 8.45am when they were both startled by "a big, loud, metallic bang".

The owner of The Accommodation Shop, in Dover, said: "I thought 'Oh, that doesn't sound good'."

The road was blocked by the wreckage when Mr Davies tried to drive back to Dover. He said: "I got out of the car and had a stroll up. He'd taken half the roof off. Someone would have been seriously injured if there were punters on board."

A spokesman for Kent Police said the "shaken" bus driver was breathalysed but recorded a negative result.

The driver of the number 15 bus had taken a wrong turning on the way to the start of the day's service on February 28. He took the 15b single-decker route, which passes under the rail bridge. The 15 should remain on London Road rather than turning off at Crabble Road on the way to Deal or Canterbury.

A spokesman for Stagecoach described the damage to the bus as "significant" and said: "Safety is our top priority and we have launched an investigation into the incident."

Stagecoach refused to comment on whether any disciplinary action was being taken against the driver.

The Southeastern rail service to London Victoria returned to normal speed at 10.20am after inspectors found no faults or structural damage to the bridge at Kearsney.

A spokesman for Network Rail said: "The low headroom sign needs to be replaced."

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by Chris from Nailsea at 23:10, 8th February 2013
 
It is impossible to make anything fool-proof because fools are so ingenious. 

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by TonyK at 21:52, 8th February 2013
 
At an airfield I knew, there were only two recorded accidents. In the first, a pilot who had recently qualified to fly twin-engined aircraft with retractable gear forgot to put the gear down. Having scraped the belly on the runway, he realised his mistake, applied full power, took off, flew the circuit and came back to a flawless landing, with unfortunately for him, too much damage to hide, but not fatal to pilot nor aircraft.

The second accident occurred a few weeks later, when the same pilot, on a check flight accompanied by an instructor, set off to prove he could manage it. On the downwind leg, he went through the checklist - Brakes Off, Undercarriage Down, Mixture Rich etc - then touched down without having lowered the undercarriage. The blame that time was placed upon the instructor, who watched him sing the song without doing the actions.

The point being that there is no way in the world that you can ever guarantee that someone will never drive a double decker under a single decker bridge unless you put in place foolproof infrastructure. Which some fool will ignore.

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by trainer at 13:06, 1st February 2013
 
I see what you mean, Chris.  You need a really good run at it to do the job properly and the bend in the road is a bit unhelpful in this respect.

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by Chris from Nailsea at 23:33, 31st January 2013
 
As Chris from Nailsea will know well, we have had a double-decker conversion under the low bridge at Nailsea and Backwell Station and that was with a driver 'off route' coming from/to the depot (can't remember which the other bus driver told me), so no specific warning would have been given.

Indeed - we discussed it here, and The Post (Bristol) provided some pictures.

A couple of points, though: the driver involved in that particular incident was apparently Polish, so maybe he didn't understand the signs, and his attempt was relatively amateurish - superficial damage to the front of the bus, rather than a complete removal of the roof!   

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by GBM at 13:19, 31st January 2013
 
Slight clarification, perhaps required.
Yes, vehicles are regularly changed (single for double & v.v), and a double can end up on a low bridge route.  But it needs to be divered (or changed to a single) at the depot stop midway.
Agreed, not entirely the drivers fault, but the subsequent inquiry will blame the driver who will invariably be changing companies in the very near future!
Also we have several different height double deckers, something a driver needs to be aware of as well.

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by trainer at 13:12, 31st January 2013
 
That's a really interesting contribution, GBM and two points leap out at me.  Firstly, unlike the railways where vehicles are restricted to specific routes, a bus company can swap a saloon (single decker) for a (double) decker on a route that has low bridges.  This cannot be a good idea when (my second point) communication with drivers is not only not provided but seems to be forbidden.  In terms of Risk Assessment, both these items seem to count negatively.  I can quite imagine driving a familiar route on service and forgetting in the stress of everyday events that the roof is several metres above where it has been for months past.  Perhaps on reflection, to my comment about the driver knowing the vehicle I must add that Control and above them, Management must bare some responsibility as well for the systems in place which may cause confusion and therefore add to risk.

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by GBM at 10:17, 31st January 2013
 
Drivers know which routes low bridges are on, and the route taken ensures a collision doesn't happen. Routes are generally planned to avoid low bridges with any vehicle.
However, a single decker will be swapped for a double, and control should inform the driver to change route because of a low bridge.
No radio's fitted to any of our vehicles, so everything is by your own mobile.
Company rules state these should be left in your locker before commencing work,  This then leaves you without communication in case of a problem...............
Control can be swamped on occasions, so they forget; the driver doesn't think ahead - errors occur.
Thank you Chris & richerwarwick. Yes, I am a driver, but forgot on one occasion (towards the end of a day) about a low bridge enroute as I had a decker.  Control advised me at a half way stop, so that village was bypassed, and the main road used.
Have heard of that happening to other drivers - either the driver reminded control, or they reminded the driver.
Diversion routes are always planned by the managers going out before and checking for vehicle suitability.  We are then supposed to be route trained to gain route familiarity.

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by trainer at 09:31, 31st January 2013
 
As Chris from Nailsea will know well, we have had a double-decker conversion under the low bridge at Nailsea and Backwell Station and that was with a driver 'off route' coming from/to the depot (can't remember which the other bus driver told me), so no specific warning would have been given. I think this is what usually happens in these cases unless a lax inspector (do they still have such things?) sends out the wrong vehicle for the route. In the end, I'm afraid, as with lorries, the driver needs to know his/her vehicle.

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by bobm at 23:24, 30th January 2013
 
I'm interested as to what reminders bus drivers may be given about 'low bridges on your new route' if their duties are changed at such short notice?

For years there has been a sign telling bus drivers to avoid one of the notorious low bridges in Wokingham.  Although not that clear in this lift from Street View, this "hi-tech" sign and its red post have outlived the bus company which erected them by a good few years!


Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by LiskeardRich at 21:18, 30th January 2013
 
I can now understand the used to single deck comments having seen a friends reaction earlier this evening. Not quite the same but I was passenger with a friend who was driving a high top transit, normally he uses a standard lower top transit. He took out the height restrictor bar at a fast food drive thru that his normal transit goes through daily. It took him a few seconds to realise what he'd just done and remember it was a high top transit. Can only imagine if someone is driving a single decker day in day out they would forget they are in a double decker if it isnt their normal bus

Re: Various 'open-top bus conversion' incidents, usually involving railway bridges
Posted by Chris from Nailsea at 21:04, 30th January 2013
 
Thanks for posting, GBM - and welcome to the Coffee Shop forum. 

Do you offer those comments as a bus driver yourself?

I'm interested as to what reminders bus drivers may be given about 'low bridges on your new route' if their duties are changed at such short notice?

 
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