Car damaged by traffic cone on A14 in Bury St Edmunds after boys spotted throwing objects from bridge

A woman's car was damaged by a traffic cone on the A14 in Bury St Edmunds after youths were spotted throwing them from a bridge.

Joanne Thomas, 46, was driving home at around 5.45pm yesterday on the eastbound carriageway when she went to overtake a lorry near junction 43 which leads to the British Sugar factory.

The lorry then ran over a traffic cone which was in the middle of the road, which flung into the side of her Mini One and caused major damage to the front left wheel arch.

She said: “It all happened really quickly — I just heard this all mighty clunking to the side of my car and then this awful noise.

“I pulled off at Sainsbury’s and stopped in the supermarket car park to inspect my car, half thinking that the cone was caught under my wheel with how loud it was, but then I saw the wheel arch was hanging off sideways and scrapping along the ground.

“It was all quite scary.”

Joanne said her car has three dents down the side where the cone had impacted the vehicle, and she has been quoted £1,200 for the repair works.

The incident was after Bury resident Damian Spall spotted two boys throwing traffic cones and spraying silly string from Malthouse Bridge, off Northgate Avenue, onto the A14 carriageway.

Damian was walking his dogs in the area between 5.30pm and 6pm when he saw the youths, and when he shouted at them to stop what they were doing, they quickly fled down nearby alleyways.

“They must have thrown the cone into the road just before we got there,” he said. “It was in the middle of two lanes and we saw cars trying to avoid it.

“We tried to find the boys, but they were gone, and by the time we came back to the bridge, traffic had all slowed right down and a police car was there — so someone must have reported seeing it very quickly.

“I know they were young lads, but they should really know better.

“It’s awful that this lady’s car was damaged, but it could have been so much worse.”

Suffolk Police confirmed that a cone was removed from the eastbound carriageway at 5.50pm yesterday with the road being cleared by 6pm.

While the police say there have not been any reports of objects being thrown from the bridge, meaning they do not know if the cone came from the side of the carriageway or if it was thrown, Damian said he reported what he saw to the police yesterday.

A spokesperson said: “Throwing anything from any bridge on to a road is obviously an extremely dangerous thing to do and could have very serious consequences.

“Anyone who witnessed any suspicious activity is urged to contact Suffolk Police as soon as they can.”

Joanne is now trying to contact the lorry company to see if they will take any responsibility for the incident and possibly help cover the cost of repairs.

“It’s far from ideal," she said. "I’m just waiting to hear back from the lorry company at this point."

“I didn’t see anyone throwing things from the bridge, so that part isn’t really my story — it just seems like I was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

“My priority is getting the car repaired, and I’m glad the police removed the cone before any other cars were damaged.

“But it’s frustrating to be £1,200 out of pocket for something I had no control over.”