Devon and Cornwall rail disruption to continue after Tesco lorry became trapped under bridge

Rail passengers in Devon and Cornwall continue to face major disruption after a lorry became trapped under a bridge in Plymouth.

Network Rail bosses have apologised for the delays and cancellations following the incident in Mannamead, with some people forced to wait several hours for buses and even spending the night in hotels.

Structural engineers were called in and the lorry was wedged in place for more than 24 hours before being removed.

There is now a limited service running between Cornwall and London, but it has been confirmed disruption will last until at least Friday 3 September.

Network Rail has urged lorry drivers to take better care, saying similar accidents occur "too often" and cost the taxpayer millions.

The company said around five railway bridges are hit by lorries each day, and the annual bill for damages caused by careless driving is near to £20million.

Mike Gallop, Network Rail's Western route director, said: "This is happening far too often where thousands of passengers have their plans ruined by careless driving.

"We are urging all lorry drivers and haulage companies to take better care, look out for the height warnings on all of our bridges and take a second to think before taking a risk and causing disruption to so many people's lives.

"Those delays are compounded by the huge bill which is often picked up by the taxpayer."

Richard Rowland, deputy managing director for Great Western Railway, added: "In the past 24 hours alone, our customers' journeys have been delayed or cancelled by two separate incidents where lorry drivers simply haven't taken enough care on the road.

"We will of course do all we can to keep people moving or offer alternative travel options, but these are entirely avoidable circumstances and they shouldn't be happening so regularly."