4 ms·

Height hunt – low bridges in the UK, and their signs

32 points by ColinWright 2y ago

mPReDiToR 2y ago
As a driver of large vehicles it would be nice if this was integrated into GOOG maps. TomTom and other do a restricted roads SatNav, isn't it about tine GOOG did this?
- zelos 2y ago
  My parents live on a tiny lane that narrows to the point where driving a car down it is tricky. Every few months a huge lorry will try to drive down it, get stuck and need help reversing back to the main road. Every time this happens, the driver is using Google maps to navigate. Surely the cost of a decent satnav is nothing compared to running a lorry, let alone buying one. Edit: Yes, Google maps adding support for restricted width/height roads would save a lot of trouble (assuming they haven't added it since I last checked)
  - dagw 2y ago
    Surely the cost of a decent satnav Can you actually get a "decent satnav" (as in consistently better than Google Maps) any more?
    - ninalanyon 2y ago
      There are route planners specifically intended for the transport business that do include such information. "Lorry Route tailors all routes to your vehicles, ensuring you never hit a bridge, or get stuck down a road too narrow. Keep your vehicles, drivers and environment safe." For instance: https://www.lorryroute.com/#benefits https://www.lorryroute.com/#benefits
tetris11 2y ago
I would genuinely be amazed if there was anything at the 1m mark.
- naming_the_user 2y ago
  To be fair 1.3m is already ridiculous. Can any vehicle get through that? An oldschool Mini is taller.
  - arboroia 2y ago
    I think 1.3m is the lowest point of the arch on the left and right rather than the middle of the arch, probably the arch would get up to 1.5 or so
  - vinay427 2y ago
    A modern Mazda MX-5 Miata can apparently get through that at 1230mm or so, although a taller driver with the top open may have to duck. It's the first car that came to my mind when trying to think of one, so there may be other modern examples. That said, it's relatively famous for the latest-generation maintaining about the same size as the first-generation NA Miata in the 90s. https://www.carsguide.com.au/mazda/mx-5/car-dimensions/2024 https://www.carsguide.com.au/mazda/mx-5/car-dimensions/2024
  - arethuza 2y ago
    Looking at the bridge with 1.3m clearance its an arch and I suspect the 1.3m applies to the sides not the middle of the arch?
  - lobsterthief 2y ago
    A DeLorean could, with 9” to spare
  - sweezyjeezy 2y ago
    I live near the 1.5m one, it's not really used by road vehicles (or at least I've never seen anyone try it), it's a path used by cyclists / pedestrians. https://adamtownsend.com/heighthunt/height.php?height=1m5-5f0 https://adamtownsend.com/heighthunt/height.php?height=1m5-5f... Side note: as you might guess from the picture / measurement - this thing is extremely awkward to navigate, especially by bike.
  - tialaramex 2y ago
msephton 2y ago
As somebody who collects and manages a community-driven list of video games featuring Moai https://moai.games https://moai.games I can safely say that this is my jam. Nice work!
deleted 2y ago
[deleted]
Symbiote 2y ago
An additional height of 5.0m is possible on an overhead electric wire (railway/tramway) sign: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5817085d40f0b64c34000000/warning-sign-overhead-electric-cables.jpg https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5817085d40f0b... https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-a-railway-safety-sign-in-england-22933066.html https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-a-railway-safety-sign-in-e...
tjwds 2y ago
I learned about this from Woolly Benguin's amazing talk at MathsJam last year in which he describes a road trip he took throughout Europe to visit streets named after each calendar day: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MwRbr-MjwII https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MwRbr-MjwII
nemoniac 2y ago
It might interest HN readers that Donald Knuth (of The Art of Computer Programming fame, among others) enjoys taking photos of yellow, diamond-shaped road signs. He has quite a collection! https://cs.stanford.edu/~knuth/diamondsigns/list.html https://cs.stanford.edu/~knuth/diamondsigns/list.html
fanf2 2y ago
I think the lowest bridge near-ish me is near the station in Ely, 2.7m https://maps.app.goo.gl/aA4z4oBHVDGy8Lsx6 https://maps.app.goo.gl/aA4z4oBHVDGy8Lsx6
ColinWright 2y ago
In case anyone is interested, this started with a talk at the MathsJam Annual Gathering in 2022. This was then trumped by Ben Ashforth's visit to a street for every date in his 2023 talk[0]. I can't wait to see what someone does this year ... it's just four weeks away[1]. (But it is now sold out for in-person tickets ... remote attendance tickets still available.) [0] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MwRbr-MjwII https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MwRbr-MjwII [1] https://mathsjam.com/gathering/uk/ https://mathsjam.com/gathering/uk/

32 points by ColinWright 2y ago

As a driver of large vehicles it would be nice if this was integrated into GOOG maps. TomTom and other do a restricted roads SatNav, isn't it about tine GOOG did this?

zelos 2y ago
My parents live on a tiny lane that narrows to the point where driving a car down it is tricky. Every few months a huge lorry will try to drive down it, get stuck and need help reversing back to the main road. Every time this happens, the driver is using Google maps to navigate. Surely the cost of a decent satnav is nothing compared to running a lorry, let alone buying one. Edit: Yes, Google maps adding support for restricted width/height roads would save a lot of trouble (assuming they haven't added it since I last checked)
- dagw 2y ago
  Surely the cost of a decent satnav Can you actually get a "decent satnav" (as in consistently better than Google Maps) any more?
  - ninalanyon 2y ago
    There are route planners specifically intended for the transport business that do include such information. "Lorry Route tailors all routes to your vehicles, ensuring you never hit a bridge, or get stuck down a road too narrow. Keep your vehicles, drivers and environment safe." For instance: https://www.lorryroute.com/#benefits https://www.lorryroute.com/#benefits

tetris11 2y ago

I would genuinely be amazed if there was anything at the 1m mark.

naming_the_user 2y ago
To be fair 1.3m is already ridiculous. Can any vehicle get through that? An oldschool Mini is taller.
- arboroia 2y ago
  I think 1.3m is the lowest point of the arch on the left and right rather than the middle of the arch, probably the arch would get up to 1.5 or so
- vinay427 2y ago
  A modern Mazda MX-5 Miata can apparently get through that at 1230mm or so, although a taller driver with the top open may have to duck. It's the first car that came to my mind when trying to think of one, so there may be other modern examples. That said, it's relatively famous for the latest-generation maintaining about the same size as the first-generation NA Miata in the 90s. https://www.carsguide.com.au/mazda/mx-5/car-dimensions/2024 https://www.carsguide.com.au/mazda/mx-5/car-dimensions/2024
- arethuza 2y ago
  Looking at the bridge with 1.3m clearance its an arch and I suspect the 1.3m applies to the sides not the middle of the arch?
- lobsterthief 2y ago
  A DeLorean could, with 9” to spare
- sweezyjeezy 2y ago
  I live near the 1.5m one, it's not really used by road vehicles (or at least I've never seen anyone try it), it's a path used by cyclists / pedestrians. https://adamtownsend.com/heighthunt/height.php?height=1m5-5f0 https://adamtownsend.com/heighthunt/height.php?height=1m5-5f... Side note: as you might guess from the picture / measurement - this thing is extremely awkward to navigate, especially by bike.
- tialaramex 2y ago

msephton 2y ago

As somebody who collects and manages a community-driven list of video games featuring Moai https://moai.games https://moai.games I can safely say that this is my jam. Nice work!

deleted 2y ago

[deleted]

Symbiote 2y ago

An additional height of 5.0m is possible on an overhead electric wire (railway/tramway) sign: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5817085d40f0b64c34000000/warning-sign-overhead-electric-cables.jpg https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5817085d40f0b... https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-a-railway-safety-sign-in-england-22933066.html https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-a-railway-safety-sign-in-e...

tjwds 2y ago

I learned about this from Woolly Benguin's amazing talk at MathsJam last year in which he describes a road trip he took throughout Europe to visit streets named after each calendar day: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MwRbr-MjwII https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MwRbr-MjwII

nemoniac 2y ago

It might interest HN readers that Donald Knuth (of The Art of Computer Programming fame, among others) enjoys taking photos of yellow, diamond-shaped road signs. He has quite a collection! https://cs.stanford.edu/~knuth/diamondsigns/list.html https://cs.stanford.edu/~knuth/diamondsigns/list.html

fanf2 2y ago

I think the lowest bridge near-ish me is near the station in Ely, 2.7m https://maps.app.goo.gl/aA4z4oBHVDGy8Lsx6 https://maps.app.goo.gl/aA4z4oBHVDGy8Lsx6

ColinWright 2y ago

In case anyone is interested, this started with a talk at the MathsJam Annual Gathering in 2022. This was then trumped by Ben Ashforth's visit to a street for every date in his 2023 talk[0]. I can't wait to see what someone does this year ... it's just four weeks away[1]. (But it is now sold out for in-person tickets ... remote attendance tickets still available.) [0] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MwRbr-MjwII https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MwRbr-MjwII [1] https://mathsjam.com/gathering/uk/ https://mathsjam.com/gathering/uk/