Motorists led astray by their in-car technology have led to a sharp rise in problems caused to railway lines, bridges and crossings over the past few years.

The railway operator said that the number of bridges hit by lorries travelling on inappropriate roads has doubled over the past decade to 2,000 a year.

Network Rail's PJ Taylor, speaking on BBC Radio Five Live's Weekend Breakfast Show, said that bridge strikes alone had cost the industry £15 million and was leading to huge delays for passengers.

He said they were now working with sat-nav manufacturers and the Highways Agency to come up with a solution.

He said: "We have 21,000 miles of railway in the UK and often it interfaces with the road network and sometimes we have problems where road vehicles hit bridges or turn down level crossings when they shouldn't do.

"With just bridge strikes we reckon it causes £15 million worth of cost to the railway industry and that is about a third of a million of delay minutes a year.

"We have noticed a big increase in the number of road vehicles hitting bridges in the last few years. Over the last decade it has doubled to 2,000 incidents a year."

Mr Taylor said that Network Rail were in discussions with sat-nav manufacturers and were undertaking a project in conjunction with the Highways Agency mapping the low bridges and level crossings. That data can then be fed into the software for the sat-navs, he said.

He added: "Sat-navs are a great tool but they are just a tool and not an alternative for keeping your wits about you and obeying the road."