Skip to main content

Swarco matrix signs help reduce bridge strikes at London hotspot

Six full colour full matrix electronic warning signs from Swarco Traffic have helped Network Rail and Transport for London (TfL) to reduce the number of oversized lorries hitting a railway bridge on London’s South Circular road by more than a third since being installed last summer. In the six-month period from January to July 2016 before the signs were introduced there were 11 crashes at the Thurlow Park Bridge in Tulse Hill. In the six months since their installation, there have only been seven inciden
March 7, 2017 Read time: 2 mins
Six full colour full matrix electronic warning signs from 129 Swarco Traffic have helped Network Rail and 1466 Transport for London (TfL) to reduce the number of oversized lorries hitting a railway bridge on London’s South Circular road by more than a third since being installed last summer.

In the six-month period from January to July 2016 before the signs were introduced there were 11 crashes at the Thurlow Park Bridge in Tulse Hill. In the six months since their installation, there have only been seven incidents, and only one in the last four months. At one point the bridge was being hit on average almost twice a month, causing more than 218 hours of delays to rail passengers between July 2015 and July 2016.

The signs are installed either side of the bridge, detecting vehicles that are too high and prompting an electronic warning to be displayed. They use energy-efficient LEDs for enhanced visual impact and to give early and clear information, particularly for non-English speaking drivers. The signs are integrated with TfL’s London Streets and Traffic Control Centre for full monitoring and control and, being variable, can be used to provide traffic information to road users.

Swarco’s optical solution reduces power consumption of the LEDs, which also means that the service life of other electrical and electronic components is extended and the LEDs do not suffer from any decrease in light intensity or colour change throughout their life cycle.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • New data shows average speed enforcement halves A9’s casualty rates
    January 26, 2016
    New data published by transport Scotland indicates that accident and casualty rates on the A9 have fallen dramatically in the first year of operation of the new average speed cameras. From the beginning of November 2014 to October 2015, two fewer people have been killed and 16 fewer people have been seriously injured between Dunblane and Inverness, while the number of ‘fatal and serious accidents’ between the two towns is down by almost 59 per cent, with ‘fatal and serious casualties’ down by approximat
  • Communications redundancy increases VMS reliability
    December 17, 2014
    Hybrid communications to variable message signs increase resilience to natural disasters and enable deployment in remote areas, as Alan Allegretto explains. Variable Message Signs (VMSs) are a common sight and a well-proven means to improve public safety on our roads and highways. ITS professionals rank the VMS as second only to interoperable radios as the most important technology to improve effectiveness during emergency incidents and evacuations. Ironically, however, current systems suffer from one criti
  • Knowing when to slow down
    August 8, 2018
    Level 2 driver assistance vehicles have little problem reading fixed metal signs at the roadside - but it’s a different story with VMS in tunnels, finds Alan Dron. Following a series of hands-free driving tests in tunnels, an Australian road authority believes that car manufacturers have to up their game before vehicles have the required levels of competence to consistently perform ‘assisted driving’ tasks. The trials, in the state of Victoria late last year, tested the ability of several vehicles to stay
  • Hitachi Rail Europe wins UK first traffic management contract
    July 28, 2015
    Passengers on some of the busiest commuter lines in the UK can look forward to more frequent and more reliable trains following a deal to provide new traffic management technology on the Thameslink route through central London. Network Rail and the Thameslink Programme have signed a contract with Hitachi Rail Europe (HRE) to deliver a step-change in technology through state-of-the-art traffic management technology.