I Hit A Bridge

With low profile loads and a mid roof, I still don't feel safe under a 13'6. Definitely not with a box and condo

Shiva, I understand where you are coming from, but from the standpoint of culpability, drivers will always be solely responsible for "preventable accidents". While I have no time behind the wheel of a truck, I do have quite a bit of experience in a profession that handles accidents in a similar manner. The basic rule we have to live by as professionals is this; the person at the controls is the final authority as to how the vehicle is operated and is therefore ultimately responsible for the outcomes. While there can be numerous "contributing" factors to an accident (an unmarked bridge, bad gps info, etc..) in the end, the buck stops with the person charged with the safe operation of the vehicle.

Ludiesel, I truly am sorry about your situation. Hope it all works out for you.

Sue and I talked about the 13 6 near Joliet on US 30. Gave me heart palpitations the first time and I checked the atlas. So I totally feel your pain.

After the last hurricane a road was repaved and the 13 6 in NC became 13 3. Thank god I saw that sign way ahead of time. The 2017 atlas did not have the nsew clearance.

Was this marked in the atlas?

And Ryan, keep in mind that trucks have gotten bigger and bigger. The further east you go, the older the bridges and lower. Heck, Brooklyn bridge is like 100 years old when horses were used lol

I have a big problem with old truck stops that were obviously made for shorter trailers. Buy more land and give us wider aisles so we don't take a fender with us when we pull out.

There are several 13 6 bridges near Joliet on hwy 30. I was literally on week 2 I believe when I came across the first one. I just slowed down to about 15 mph and closed my eyes. LOL!

JJ

I agree with Ryan and shiva. 99 percent of the time we are 100 percent responsible for everything that happens. But there are situations where a company will charge you with a preventable where if the others (construction companies, county city govts) had done what they were supposed to do. For example with the bridges if they aren't marked and the requirement from the Atlas says they have to be a certain height or be marked then why is it our fault. Now if your on nj-17 n you miss the signs saying that the only spot with 13,6 clearance is in the left lane then that would be a drivers fault. There are even states that don't even list thier truck routes online. Let alone up to date low bridges and weight restrictions. Basically what I'm saying is all the trip planning in the world and you could still end up in a position that you shouldn't be in. Now I still spend at least 20-30 mins trip planning unless it's a run that I haven't done n then it's more but even still I worry about a situation like that where I'll literally run into a bridge or power line that I didn't know about.

Going over can be just as bad as going under...

My whole whole viewpoint on this matter is that he shouldn't have been fired. Disciplined, but not fired. His career is now ruined in trucking.

Brett, I'm not pointing fingers but I disagree. MERICA

Well then you go ahead and "fight the good fight" if you feel that defending your right to run into steel structures while blaming others is somehow going to help you. It isn't my time you're wasting.

that doesn't mean they couldn't potentially hit one if bad luck strikes.

We talk endlessly about taking personal responsibility in this industry. Certain trades demand a much higher level of personal responsibility than others - firemen, police officers, military, handling explosives, logging, commercial fishing, and many others. If you think hitting a bridge is bad luck or it's someone else's fault then you need to find a desk job or become a politician before you kill yourself or someone else.

Is anyone here aware of any bridges out there that are low bridges but are not listed in the Rand McNally Motor Carrier's Atlas?

And do you guys have any idea how many low bridges there used to be in Chicago back in the day? The list in the Atlas was several columns long back when I started driving. I drove Chicago more than any city in the country during my career and I never hit any bridges. Never hit anything for that matter.

Some people get the job done and don't make excuses, place blame, or shun their responsibilities. I didn't have the luxury of cell phones or GPS or Qualcomm or any of that when I started driving. I had a Rand McNally Atlas, a pen, and a notepad and I figured it out just fine.

In fact, I live in New York State where the overwhelming majority of our bridges are purposely marked wrong. Some were updated with actual height, others were not. And yet I still never hit a bridge or planned on blaming anyone else if I had.

Purposely marked wrong? Can you explain? That makes no sense. Then again, it is NY.

A lot of bridges if not most in NY state are purposely marked lower than actual clearance and you will have a "heart attack" rounding a corner and seeing a clearance sign posted a foot lower than your actual height. A good example is the Cross Bronx Expressway/I-278 at Manhatten and Brooklyn Bridges area which are posted 12'6". There have been a few accidents there when a driver locked it up and was rear ended. Almost always a driver will be charged with hitting a fixed object even though he might not be 100% wrong. If an overpass is posted say at 13'8" and a repave is done lowering the clearance to 13'4" shouldn't the government responsible for that overpass be held responsible for "falsely posting this clearance" and have reposted the new clearance? In my opinion yes but in the real world no because you will be proved wrong anyway.

A lot of bridges if not most in NY state are purposely marked lower than actual clearance and you will have a "heart attack" rounding a corner and seeing a clearance sign posted a foot lower than your actual height. A good example is the Cross Bronx Expressway/I-278 at Manhatten and Brooklyn Bridges area which are posted 12'6". There have been a few accidents there when a driver locked it up and was rear ended. Almost always a driver will be charged with hitting a fixed object even though he might not be 100% wrong. If an overpass is posted say at 13'8" and a repave is done lowering the clearance to 13'4" shouldn't the government responsible for that overpass be held responsible for "falsely posting this clearance" and have reposted the new clearance? In my opinion yes but in the real world no because you will be proved wrong anyway.

I agree that if the clearance is lowered the sign should be updated. Otherwise why even bother marking them? But it still makes no sense why they would intentionally mark them wrong.

My theory is that they mark them wrong, to prevent big trucks from flying through w/o a care in the world. And in some cases, to deter them from using that route.