A431 Bath Road: Police issue statement after lorry leaves trail of destruction

A major road remains closed tonight after a lorry left a trail of destruction before coming to a stop in Oldland Common High Street. A man has been arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol and dangerous driving.

The incident happened this evening (December 6) at around 5.15pm. Avon and Somerset Police was first alerted to a report of a lorry hitting the railway bridge used by Avon Valley Railway on the A431 Bath Road in Willsbridge.

The lorry then appeared to damage streetlighting, telephone lines and several vehicles along Bath Road and Cherry Garden Road, where the vehicle headed before stopping in Oldland Common.

The A431Bath Road, from the BP garage to Cherry Garden Road, is tonight closed for police investigation and diversions are in place. First Bus has been forced to terminate its 45 and 42 services which normally head through the scene of the crash.

A spokesperson for Avon and Somerset Police said: “We were called at around 5.15pm today (Tuesday 6 December) following reports of a lorry colliding with a bridge in Bath Road, in Willsbridge, South Gloucestershire.

“One man has been arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol and dangerous driving. Multiple vehicles, trees, streetlighting and telephone lines have been damaged but we believe no one has been injured.

“Officers are working with BT and the local authority to make the scene safe and clear debris. The road has been closed in both directions from the Keynsham Road, Bath Road and Willsbridge Hill junction to the junction of Bath Road and Cherry Garden Road. and diversions are in place.”

Social media groups were tonight full of people describing what they saw and heard. One person said they saw the lorry ‘with his load all hanging off’ turn up Cherry Garden Road having hit the railway bridge.

Another person said the lorry had hit the bridge, a telegraph pole and a bus before heading up Cherry Garden Road toward Oldland Common. Telephone cables had been left strewn across a garden, another person wrote.

One person wrote ‘absolute carnage’, while others were concerned for the welfare of the driver.

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