A pedestrian stood defiantly in the path of a 30-tonne lorry in a bid to stop it illegally crossing Bradford on Avon’s historic town bridge on Friday afternoon.

Bill Laslett, 60, was joined by a town councillor and two other ardent members of the public in the spontaneous protest after a heavy goods vehicle attempted to cross the bridge which has a weight restriction of 18-tonnes.

Mr Laslett, of Limpley Stoke, near Bradford, said: “I was walking down Silver Street and was aware of a slow procession of cars and among them was a large lorry and I suppose I wouldn’t have done anything if it had turned left (away from the bridge) but it didn’t and I decided, on the spur of the moment, to try and stop it because I was so outraged by these bully-boy tactics that I lost all sense of rationality.

“The lorry came right up to me within just a few feet but I wasn’t going to give ground and I stood there and the driver started swearing at me and shouting at me from the cab.

“I said to him 'I am sorry but there is a principle here and you are not going to get away with it’. I said I would call the police and with that he got even angrier.

“I understand that it did produce some congestion for a while but if I was in the wrong then the police would have told me not to be silly, but they were completely supportive.

“It is nothing to do with bravery or courage on my part because I am not that sort of person but I lose all sense of fear and rationality when I am incensed.

“I feel very protective of Bradford on Avon. It has been preserved for centuries and now it is being invaded by these juggernauts.”

Councillor Vicky Landell-Mills was nearby at the time and had been in the process of taking down the lorry’s licence plate number when she realised that someone had stood in its path to stop is passing.

“The weight restriction on the bridge was agreed a very long time ago and thank goodness we don’t get the full quota of lorries that would be coming through if there wasn’t one,” she said.

“It is not because the bridge is at risk, it is because lorries of that size are very intimidating when they are going through the town.

“We were just making the point that it is very damaging for people trying to use the town in a normal way, like pushing their pushchairs or crossing the road.

“People are pretty fed up really. We have legislation in place and there is signage up to warn drivers as well.”

The police were called and they escorted the lorry over the bridge.

Sergeant Neil Berrett of Bradford on Avon Police said: “I am aware of the passion which is caused by this subject and share in the public frustration.

“When we see vehicles crossing the bridge in contravention of the weight restriction we will deal with them and where appropriate they will be issued with fixed penalty tickets.

“I want to reassure people that we do take action. Quite often we stop them outside of the town centre to avoid blocking the road or turn them around before they even reach the bridge.

“Our Roads Policing Unit will be assisting in tackling this issue and I will be discussing other options with the Community Area Board as it is an issue that prosecution alone will not stop.”