Installing ANPR cameras on Marlow Bridge is the best way to protect the iconic structure from overweight vehicles, says the town’s top police officer.

Sergeant Robin Hughes, who has spent hours handing out advisory notices and fines to drivers flouting the bridge’s three-tonne weight limit in the last six weeks, will be drawing up a report recommending the camera system to Bucks County Council.

While hailing their month-long education programme on the bridge a success, Sgt Hughes said Thames Valley Police is a “limited resource” and officers need to “re-focus” on other issues.

He is now preparing to write a report to Transport for Bucks recommending Automatic Number Plate Recognition cameras be installed to target drivers who try and cross the weak bridge.

Addressing members of the Marlow Community Forum, Sgt Hughes said his recommendation is “no secret”.

He said: “I have other commitments that have had to take the backburner but now they need attention. We won’t be withdrawing completely from the bridge but we can’t spend as much as there as we have been.

“I stress I can only recommend and that is what I will be doing. The ANPR works 24 hours a day, seven days a week and doesn’t need feeding or watering or looking after by me or BCC. The technology is readily available. I think it would pay for itself very quickly.”

Sgt Hughes was also quick to rule out a suggestion put forward by a number of Marlow residents – installing a height restriction barrier.

He said: “It will penalise a lot of vehicles that could use the bridge legitimately and secondly, it will pose a big danger to people who are just going on holiday and have bikes on the roof rack. That would be disastrous.”

The system would involve installing cameras that take pictures of vehicles as they go over the bridge. Sgt Hughes said the pictures would go to an agency which would “interrogate” the DVLA database for details of the vehicle and if it is overweight, a fine would be generated.

The plans were welcomed by community organisations at the forum meeting.

Bob Savidge, a member of the Marlow Society, said: “We need to do this for the sake of the town. We don’t want it to cost a fortune repairing the bridge all the time.”

Liz Lorente, from Transition Town Marlow, added: “Hopefully Marlow residents will learn very quickly and it will just be non-Marlow residents who are putting money in the pot.”

The Marlow policing team turned around just under 700 overweight vehicles in the time they were present on the bridge over the past six weeks and handed out more than 3,500 advisory notices.

Sgt Hughes said: “At the beginning of the month we were turning around 30 vehicles an hour, so one every two minutes, at the end of the month, we were turning around four every hour, so one every 15 minutes.

“Now we have moved to ticketing – I can’t tell you how many, but we have issued a lot, which is reinforcing the message.

“I did a plain clothes hour there yesterday and in an hour there were three overweight vehicles which I’m really pleased about.”