Anyone who remembers the distinctive low-floor buses that ran underneath the railway bridge at Oxford station will appreciate the particular difficulties they posed.

Passengers climbing to the upper deck had to squeeze through a cramped passage before reaching their seats, while passengers occupying the right-hand seats on the lower deck had to keep their heads down due to the restricted height.

Ordinary double-decker vehicles were too high to pass beneath the structure, which meant the company had to acquire these purpose-built low-floor models to continue serving those routes.

Despite these measures, collisions still happened.

The photograph dates from 1977 and shows a Midland Red bus working on behalf of Oxford under contract. It was returning to the Cowley Road depot after carrying workers from the Harwell nuclear power station to Stanford-in-the-Vale close to Wantage.

Happily, the vehicle was empty save for the driver, 33-year-old Barry Pugh. He described what happened: he initially thought something had fallen onto the bus, then realised the roof was being torn off much like the lid of a tinned fish. He explained that he only drove this particular route occasionally and nobody had warned him that the vehicle would not clear the bridge.

According to officials, since 1950 the bridge had struck the tops of at least 13 buses.

The Midland Red bus measured 14 feet 4 inches in height while the bridge provided only 13 feet 3 inches of headroom.

Clifford Fletcher, who served as deputy traffic manager for Oxford South Midland, observed that this was not the kind of incident anyone wished to witness. He said the bridge created serious difficulties and considerably constrained their ability to plan routes.

The impact scattered wreckage across the carriageway and caused lengthy tailbacks in both directions as traffic could only proceed single file underneath. The estimate for repairs stood at £1,500.

An advertisement displayed on the side of the bus from the Cleansing Service Group proved somewhat appropriate: the slogan read Where there’s muck – there’s us!

The road was certainly covered in wreckage following this occurrence.

The lower photograph shows another instance where a bus lost its entire roof in a similar encounter in 1967.

That vehicle collided with the Botley Road rail bridge during the same year.

Notices were posted in cabs forbidding drivers from taking this route. Audio alarms and illuminated indicators were fitted to the bridge – the Oxford Mail dubbed the system the magic eye plan.

Eventually the road level was reduced to prevent further incidents.

The reconstructed bridge and carriageway should offer sufficient dimensions for buses once it reopens following a three-year closure to traffic this summer.

Network Rail’s contractor Kier installed the replacement bridge in February, with Botley Road expected to welcome vehicles again by the end of August.