The incident

On Sunday 3 March a so-called ‘professional’ driver of a container truck loaded with a single ‘high cube’ 40 foot ISO shipping container bound for the Port of Melbourne tried to make it under the 4.0 metre clearance Napier Street bridge, but ignored the warning signs – striking the bridge and dislodging the container from the truck.

By the time I came past trains were already running again following an inspection of the bridge, and Victoria Police were in attendance – not hard, given their police station is next door!

The damage

The 40 foot container had been dislodged from the trailer, and hanging at a perilous angle, almost ready to fall onto the footpath.

The bridge protection beam taking the hit rather than the bridge.

The impact speed must have been high, as the bridge warning lights had been dislodged.

And the steel container deformed.

An impact mark from the bridge protection beam visible to one side.

Dislodged container twistlocks on the ground below.

A hole in the fresh asphalt where the container fell to the ground.

Recovery time

The truck operator called up mobile crane to assist with the recovery operation.

But it wasn’t needed – a heavy tow truck was used to drag the container away from the truck.

Chains and the rear boom used to lift up the rear of the container.

Which then topped over sideways.

Crushing the fence intended to ‘protect’ pedestrians from road vehicles.

I don’t think that was how they intended the recovery to go!

At least the semi-trailer was now free.

But in need of repair – the rear container twistlocks bent out of position.

Another crack

After a bit of maneuvering, the heavy tow truck was able to pull the 40 foot container back upright.

And then pull it clear of the bridge.

Allowing a waiting sidelifter truck to pull up alongside.

Lift the damaged container onto the sidelift trailer.

And take it away.

Allowing the eastbound lanes to be reopened.

All up the recovery effort took an hour to complete.

So why is the Napier Street bridge worse?

The Montague Street might be notorious for bridge strikes in Melbourne.

But the bulk of impacts in South Melbourne are just weekend warriors on car licences driving rental trucks when moving house – not ‘professional’ drivers with a heavy vehicle licence – and a four tonne steel shipping containers falling off a truck is far more dangerous to other motorists than the body of a pantech truck getting a little beat up.

In addition the statistics don’t lie – the the Napier Street bridge was struck 37 times by heavy vehicles between 2018 and 2022, while the Montague Street bridge was only hit once in 2021.

One possible solution – the Port Rail Shuttle project, paused back in 2015, but ready to start operation ‘soon’.

Footnote

And a bit of a laugh – a petition to “Paint Footscray’s Napier Street Bridge With Scary Shark Teeth“.

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