Wrong way, go back — the high-stakes mistake of picking a bad route with a heavy vehicle
Every week, somewhere on Australia's road network, a heavy vehicle takes the wrong route and a bridge pays the price. The mining sector relies on heavy vehicles as a critical aspect of operations, delivering plant, equipment and other necessities.
In Queensland alone, there were 369 bridge strikes in 2024. Another 348 were struck in 2025, with one bridge on Logan Road in Buranda hit 64 times in a single year.
In other words, roughly once a day, critical structures are being hit by vehicles whose drivers have no business being there.
But these are not freak accidents.
Each bridge strike, scrape along a tunnel or truck that finds itself unable to manoeuvre around a tight corner represents the potential for fines, a lost load, a blow to productivity and reputational damage.
It seems like this should be a simple matter of switching on the GPS, yet we know commercial systems frequently fail to provide up-to-date information about the routes taken by heavy and over-height vehicles. Many transport departments specifically urge drivers not to rely on their GPS, Google Maps or Apple Maps and the risks of doing so can be seen in the frequency of collision events.
The risk of making a wrong turn comes at a cost
State authorities estimate each truck-strike incident can cost $100,000 or more in infrastructure repair, rail delays and emergency response — and that’s before hefty penalties and fines.
Just driving into a tunnel in NSW with a vehicle that exceeds posted height limits risks an instant fine, yet a study by the NSW Overheight Truck Taskforce found the average height of trucks that caused incidents in 4.6m-limit tunnels was 4.7m.
In the GHD Airport Tunnel, with a 4.4m height limit, there were 10 incidents over seven months, including a truck that was 5.23m high.
In Queensland, repeated incidents have forced up penalties, and a driver who damages rail infrastructure can be penalised by a court up to $13,352 and four demerit points.
Hitting a bridge, tunnel or overhead structure also comes with a penalty of up to $6676 and 4 demerit points for ignoring low clearance signage.
Despite this — and the considerable efforts of authorities — the number of strikes on infrastructure continues to be an issue.
In recent months, there have been bridge strikes in the Brisbane CBD, in Sydney during peak hour with a crane falling into traffic, and multiple hits on overhead infrastructure in regional areas.
In November, a cherry picker in NSW that hit a bridge caused it to collapse, killing a rail worker.
Besides the human tragedy, the reputational and legal exposure that follows incidents like these can outlast the physical damage by years.
Licence conditions tighten, insurance premiums climb and contractors take their business elsewhere.
Fix the problem before you start the engine
Flaws in the journey planning and navigation steps are often to blame, and drivers get caught out when they aren’t sufficiently aware of their load or route.
Data shows that even with warnings, drivers frequently misjudge vehicle height from inside the cab, don’t have up-to-date route planning, and rely on standard GPS navigation rather than heavy vehicle routing.
What’s worse, it is estimated many bridge strike failures originate at the planning stage, before a driver turns a key, with drivers or their supervisors picking an incorrect route before the vehicle even moves.
“The industry is still running heavy vehicle logistics on tools built for passenger cars,” Craig Charlton
Standard GPS navigation doesn't know load height, doesn't check permits, and doesn't know the overpass on the most direct route has a 4.0-metre clearance while the rig is 4.3 metres.
To help address the issue, Quartex has developed JMS, a specialised route planning tool specifically designed to enforce compliance before the driver gets on the road.
JMS validates routes before vehicles move — checking load heights, permit conditions, and infrastructure clearances against the specific combination of vehicle, load, and intended path.
If a vehicle exceeds the clearance or the permit doesn't match the route, the journey doesn't start.
What’s more, if the route needs to change or there’s an obstruction, all new calculations are taking the load and height into account. In short, JMS gives complete visibility of people on the move, integrating journey planning, navigation, fatigue management, hazard alerts and emergency response into a single system.
With one unplanned deviation all it takes to turn a routine delivery into a six-figure incident, mining companies and contractors that transport high and wide loads need up-to-the-minute information.
Navigation planning is powered by Trimble to provide turn-by-turn guidance, accurate ETAs and route deviation alerts, even in areas with limited connectivity, which gives drivers and their companies the clarity they need.
Route compliance is built in alongside other critical safety features such as driver fatigue management and safety checklists, so you can avoid high-stakes mistakes on the road.
JMS provides visibility, control and confidence to keep people and operations moving safely.
Driver fatigue, remote terrain, poor visibility, and patchy mobile coverage make road travel one of the most complex safety environments to manage. Add in compliance requirements, grey-fleet oversight, DIDO travel, and the need for accurate routing across private roads, and even the best teams struggle to maintain full awareness of where their workers are and how they’re travelling.
By centralising the planning, approving and overseeing of every trip from start to finish, you can ensure your workforce is connected throughout the entire journey process.