MORE deterrent measures are needed to prevent a death occurring on a grade-II listed bridge at Usk that is constantly being damaged by heavy goods vehicles, a local community council have said.

The latest incident occurred on September 22 when the bridge was badly damaged again by an HGV lorry using the route as a short cut from the A449 dual carriageway and the A4042 Abergavenny to Cwmbran road, and creating a large hole in the bridge's structure - an area that was repaired numerous times last year.

Repair costs are now running into tens of thousands of pounds every year and the bridge was hit at least 12 times during 2010 by vehicles ignoring the warning sign posts.

Usk Town Council have been trying to solve the problem for the past four years but feel that as a community council their powers are limited to evoke a change.

Tony Kear, a former mayor of Usk who has been a co-opted onto the council's sub committee examining the situation and he said: "This problem has turned into a long running saga. The frequency of the bridge getting damaged is increasing year on year and we need to resolve the problem now."

Discussions with Monmouthshire County Council and the police have resulted in new road warning signs being erected and CCTV installed on the bridge, along with weight monitoring equipment being installed on the bridge as a permanent measure.

Mr Kear continued: "Enforcement is one problem, satellite navigation is another and the deterrent of a maximum fine of £30 is not really effective enough for operators wishing to chance their luck.

"People are coming forward now and tell us that they have nearly been hit or have had to jump out of the way to avoid being hit.

Its only a matter of time before we are dealing with a somebody who is badly injured or even gets killed because of an HGV driver not observing the warning signs.

"Usk town councillors are determined to get this situation resolved before we have a tragedy on our hands."