An unintended consequence of using GPS is threatening Vermont's historic covered bridges... 2

[JohnRBaker]

I suspect that this could also be responsible for some other recent run-ins with large trucks crashing into low bridges:

Historic covered bridges are under threat by truck drivers relying on GPS meant for cars

https://apnews.com/article/covered-bridges-gps-truckers-accidents-906e3379e07b20dbcdbe16e7cf5e5d6d

An excerpt from the above item:

One of Vermont’s historic covered bridges has fallen under threat from modern technology.

Box truck drivers relying on GPS continually crash through Lyndon’s 140-year-old Miller’s Run bridge despite signs, including a flashing one, to deter vehicles that are too tall or too heavy from crossing. Drivers can face a fine of $5,000 from the town, plus state penalties.

Still, the bridge keeps getting whacked.

“GPS is the most general excuse that is given by drivers that do hit the bridge,” said Justin Smith, Lyndon’s municipal administrator. He says the real problem is lack of common sense.

The bridge, built in 1878 and renovated in 1995, lies on a short cut motorists use to avoid downtown Lyndonville. The community, which has five historic covered bridges, including two that are in use, calls itself the “Covered Bridge Capital of the NEK,” short for Northeast Kingdom area.

John R. Baker, P.E. (ret)
Irvine, CA
Siemens PLM:

The secret of life is not finding someone to live with
It's finding someone you can't live without

 

[waross]

My commercial quality Garmin GPS allowed me to enter the height and length of my truck and whether I was pulling a trailer.
You get what you pay for and I guess some truckers aren't paying enough for a commercial quality GPS.

--------------------
Ohm's law
Not just a good idea;
It's the LAW!

 

[IRstuff]

You get what you pay for and I guess some truckers aren't paying enough for a commercial quality GPS.

I think that presumes that they even pay attention; some don't even pay attention to street signs, ala the infamous bridge that keeps shearing the tops of trucks that ignore the warning signs and flashing lights.

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[kjoiner]

The 11 foot 8 bridge. Maybe the covered bridges need something like this or pop up bollard posts to stop over-height trucks.

 

[TugboatEng]

In parking garages they hang a bar from chains at the clearance height of the bridge. It works well. I've been stopped by one once.

 

[3DDave]

The 11 foot 8 (now 11 foot 8 + 8) bridge has multiple signs, a traffic controller that is attached to height monitor to cause a red signal, and a giant flashing sign spelling out what to do, before the crash beam marked with the clearance height.

It was not enough to stop them all.

The 11 foot 8 barricade prevented the bridge (almost always) from being hit, but more than one of these small bridges have had some moron run an overweight load into collapsing them.

For a tunnel in Australia, they too put up a swinging bar. Trucks would hit that, tear it loose, and proceed to get jammed into the tunnel entrance. Since it was underground and dark inside they could use a one-of-a-kind water spray curtain with a "STOP" projected on it. It helped, but so did huge, much publicized fines.

A lot of collisions, at least for 11 foot 8, were rental equipment, much from out of town.

I recall there is also a low bridge near MIT that gets slammed every Fall as freshmen and their parents bring truckloads of furniture to the campus. Unfortunately, unlike 11 foot 8, no one lives close enough to put up cameras.

 

[Murph 9000]

The bar hanging from chains doesn't always deter everyone:

U-Haul Parking

Some people are extremely determined to ignore the height limits:

Atlanta Police looking for driver who wedged U-Haul in Buckhead parking garage

 

[human909]

You guys in the up in the land of "states which are somewhat united" have your 11 foot 8 bridge.

Down south in Kangaroo Land we have one that is much more entertaining which is 9 feet 10 in the middle of our second largest city.

The popularity of it amongst trucks and even busses has risen so much that it also has its own website and a countdown of days when it doesn't get hit.

How Many Days Since Montague Street Bridge Has Been Hit?

Montague Street Bridge Wiki

And in true Aussie fashion we have our own beer:

And the Road Minister also commented on it in a particularly blunt Aussie fashion:

Some fun videos:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HR7NivKqfzo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jaUo1KXIU1k

 

[3DDave]

11 foot 8 is not the shortest bridge in the US, just one with cameras, microphones, and video recording.

The beauty of 11 foot 8 are the videos. The variety and anticipation. Will the truck driver gun it through a red light? Will they try to make their truck crouch down by going more slowly? Will the recently retired RV owners realize that the A/C units on the roof are taller than the top of the RV body? How smooth an aluminum curl will be stripped from a rental van or will it be peeled like a can of sardines? Will the guys in the military be cleaning latrines for the remainder of their service?

Edge of the seat when a new one pops up.


I do admire the volume business the 3m clearance produces. The glass truck - Chef's kiss.

 

[human909]

11 foot 8 is not the shortest bridge in the US, just one with cameras, microphones, and video recording.

Yeah I don't know why we a local business hasn't set up cameras on the Montague Bridge. Given the frequency of hits they might be able to make a tidy profit on their Youtube account and from media companies.

 

[pellucidar]

I recall there is also a low bridge near MIT that gets slammed every Fall as freshmen and their parents bring truckloads of furniture to the campus. Unfortunately, unlike 11 foot 8, no one lives close enough to put up cameras.

It's not a low bridge, it's a major car-only thoroughfare, on the Boston side of the river. Hitting the overpasses on Storrow Drive has its own verb, storrowing, and while more frequent in September due to the zillions of colleges in the area, it happens year round despite plenty of signs.

The main cause seems to be commercial and rental vehicles whose owners are too cheap to pay for truck GPS.

 

[human909]

How is this for low access? 1.75m or 5 foot 9".

I'd have to duck just to walk into that underground parking.

This is a block of apartments, so private access but to a 20 or so condos. But still, it is ridiculous. I can only presume there was some screwup by the architects/engineers regarding services clearance (I'm guessing fire sprinkers.)

 

[IRstuff]

That's even lower than the bottom of a door, which means that if you're 6-ft or taller, you'd likely get beaned by something if you're not paying attention to where you're walking inside. That sounds like a recipe for disaster and lawsuits.

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[waross]

I was driving an SUV with a roof rack.
Going into an underground car park, I was careful that I had clearance below the swinging bar.
I was leaving when i heard a clink overhead, followed by the his of escaping air.
Opps, dry sprinkler system.
I immediately went back to the entrance and took a picture of my SUV under the swinging bar, with clearance.
I went to the desk and showed them the picture.
Their main concern was if my vehicle was damaged and if I was going to take action against them.
I guess that I wasn't the first to hit that sprinkler.

--------------------
Ohm's law
Not just a good idea;
It's the LAW!

 

[phamENG]

I had a project last year assessing and designing repairs for a bank drive-through - somebody tried to take a 26' UHaul under it. In the middle of the night. In their frustration of not getting through the first time, they decided to try again, but faster. Still didn't fit. So then they gave up and went around. Well...they tried to go around. A 26' long box doesn't handle like a Civic, so they caught the back corner of the canopy as they cut the corner waaayyy too early. In their confusion, they gunned it and burried the edge of that canopy about 4 feet into the side of the truck. And there it stayed until the police arrived.

You can't prevent stupid with a sign. For something that is irreplaceable like these bridges, I think a large barrier is certainly called for.

 

[WestLevel]

It is not feasible to put a physical barrier on every bridge.

In my area if you haul over a certain size (width or height) you need a permit.

Dont try and 'solve' this unsolvable issue. It keeps us employed after all

 

[MintJulep]

See "Storrowed" in Boston slang

 

[LittleInch]

They've tried this in the UK, but not everyone knows what it means....

Remember - More details = better answers
Also: If you get a response it's polite to respond to it.

 

[zeusfaber]

That's even lower than the bottom of a door

My guess is that there's a steep ramp involved and they've had problems with long-wheelbase vehicles. Less of an issue for short-wheelbase pedestrians.

A.

 

[CWB1]

The biggest issue with low bridges stateside is that they're lucrative for municipalities. The usual scam is to place signs where they're either not visible or beyond the point of being effective so the politicians can blame drivers while benefiting from the revenue. Box trucks are amazingly standardized, typically ~33k GVW chassis derated to 26k so its stable with plenty of overload capacity for safety, and standard box typically 26' long x 12' high. Looking at the pics in the article, the bridge clearance looks pretty close to the trucks' height, makes you wonder why the muni who rebuilt it multiple times didnt raise it a bit.