The most bizarre loads seen transported on the roads

Roads are usually the domain of cars, vans, lorries and motorcycles – but now again something more exotic can be seen on the highway.

From wind turbine blades to weapons of war, eyebrow-raising loads have been spotted being transported from one location to the next.

And while most of the time this causes no more problems than a few delays and some snarled-up traffic, when you find out what’s on board it might surprise you.

Graham Conway, Managing Director of Select Car Leasing, said:

“It doesn’t happen very often so it’s always a bit of a shock to see something being transported on the back of a truck that looks like it definitely doesn’t belong there. From prefab houses to enormous engineering parts, they are normally accompanied by a fleet of patrol vehicles warning other motorists of their size.
“But even though most people have seen something unusual on the roads during their driving careers, some of the ‘abnormal loads’ that have been moved along the Tarmac still surprise.”

According to Highways England, an “abnormal load” is a vehicle that weighs more than 44,000kg, has an axle load of more than 10,000kg for a single non-driving axle and 11,500kg for a single driving axle, is more than 2.9 metres wide or has a rigid length of more than 18.65 metres.

Those transporting these abnormal loads have to notify the police, highway authorities and even bridge owners such as Network Rail before setting off.

Plans may need to be submitted as much as 10 weeks in advance to ensure the route is suitable and necessary measures are in place.

Here, Select Car Leasing has rounded up some of the more bizarre things transported on the roads:

Aircraft

While planes obviously fly themselves, and the enormous wings made for the giant Airbus Beluga aircraft in North Wales are taken away via barge, sometimes the giants of the sky are spotted on the roads.

In February last year a wingless and tailless Boeing 727 made its way from Cotswold Airport in Kemble, Gloucestershire, along the M5, M4 and M32 at 20mph – before arriving at its new home on a Bristol business estate.

Businessman Johnny Palmer purchased the former Japan Airlines aircraft for £100,000 to use it as a novel office space.

Transformers

Not the Optimus Prime kind, but instead the heaviest ever load transported on British roads.

This 640-tonne bit of kit was transferred from Didcot power station in Oxfordshire to Avonmouth Docks, Bristol, in 2013.

Measuring up at 100 metres long and 5 metres wide, it took up two lanes of motorway and was accompanied by an astonishing 20 support vehicles as it moved at just 4mph.

The result of its snail-like progress was a 13-mile tailback on the M4.

Nuclear weapons

Most people aren’t aware that potentially deadly substances are regularly shifted around the county via the road system.

And it’s not just Trident nuclear weapons – submarine reactor fuel is also loaded onto the back of specialist lorries.

This has been going on for more than 50 years without a major incident.

The strictly-controlled journeys are monitored by the Defence Nuclear Material Transport Operations, and include armed Royal Marines ready to respond to any perceived threats.

Houses

There are few things quite as odd as seeing a fully-formed house moving down the motorway.

But with a growing demand for pre-assembled homes being dropped onto new residential sites, it’s becoming more common.

Prefabricated houses are one of the simplest ways to solve the housing crisis and offer some serious eco credentials, too.

However, you are unlikely to witness the astonishing sight that drew crowds in San Francisco last year when a 139-year-old two-storey Victorian house was moved six blocks on the back of a low loader.

Wind turbine parts

Renewable energy has taken off over the past decade, with wind energy leading the charge.

According to the Office of National Statistics (ONS), offshore wind accounts for 13 per cent and onshore wind 11 per cent of the total electricity generation in the UK.

Getting the huge wind turbine blades to their destination often involves some seriously big trucks and strict planning.

While rare on UK roads, drivers in north-east Germany got a shock in 2017 when a turbine being transported on the M33 motorway slipped and crushed a passing lorry.

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