Trucks and Bridges?

silverharp

I saw a picture in the Irish Times of a truck stuck under a bridge in Kerry. Is there some kind of demarcation between the councils and IE that more bridges dont have those poles with chains erected either side of the bridges. It seems like if a bridge is hit once it will be hit again so why isn't this protection added after the first incident?

TKK

In these cases it is always the trucker that is at fault. They are responsible for their load and should be aware of the height and read the signs on the bridges to know if they can safely pass under.

silverharp

TKK wrote:

In these cases it is always the trucker that is at fault. They are responsible for their load and should be aware of the height and read the signs on the bridges to know if they can safely pass under.

I agree, but doesnt mean you don't idiot proof if there is a net saving, you could use that argument for not having railway barriers

jd

A mandatory 20k fined would put an end to that nonsense.
jd

daymobrew

A letter in Tuesday's Irish Times made an interesting point - it said that road resurfacing often doesn't remove a layer of the existing tarmac before adding a new one. In such cases bridges in these areas are now a few inches shorter. For a situation where the truck is close to the bridge height, these few inches could be critical.

I do agree that there should be severe penalties for bridge strikes.

Wishbone Ash

daymobrew wrote:

A letter in Tuesday's Irish Times made an interesting point - it said that road resurfacing often doesn't remove a layer of the existing tarmac before adding a new one. In such cases bridges in these areas are now a few inches shorter. For a situation where the truck is close to the bridge height, these few inches could be critical.

I do agree that there should be severe penalties for bridge strikes.

Yes, that frequently happens on 'smaller' roads. Another related point; the posted height is not always correct in the first place. The bridge that was struck on the M7 near Naas a few years ago was 4.95 metres. AFAIK motorway bridges are supposed to be at least 5 metres and therefore do not require height notice. The driver would have assumed that this bridge had 5 metres clearance (although strictly speaking you are supposed to allow 15cm margin of error above your trailer). I think the damage then was an unbelievable €1 million .

Guy:Incognito

daymobrew wrote:

A letter in Tuesday's Irish Times made an interesting point - it said that road resurfacing often doesn't remove a layer of the existing tarmac before adding a new one. In such cases bridges in these areas are now a few inches shorter. For a situation where the truck is close to the bridge height, these few inches could be critical.

I do agree that there should be severe penalties for bridge strikes.

Would you feel confident driving under a bridge where you knew you only had 3-4 inches clearance in the first place? I would'nt. Theres always a risk you could go over a small rock thats 5 inches or that you could kerb the truck, raising it a few inches.

Saruman

also remember a truck is never the same height. If it has a full load it could be inches lower than if its empty. I have heard of truckers going out with a full load only to get stuck on the way back as they are empty and so need more clearance.. either way its the truckers fault.

dazberry

.. and since Butt Bridge seems to be a favourate and I work nearby - I've learned that trucks don't always get wedged - they shed their load instead - and when for instance these are large precast concret segments - its a bit frightening really.

D.

Wishbone Ash

Saruman wrote:

also remember a truck is never the same height. If it has a full load it could be inches lower than if its empty. I have heard of truckers going out with a full load only to get stuck on the way back as they are empty and so need more clearance.. either way its the truckers fault.

Most modern trucks (and other large vehicles) have air suspension which keeps the truck at the same level full or empty. The only reason that a truck would be running below it's normal level is if an airbag was not functioning correctly.

You may be confusing this with the dumping of air from the suspension system to release a truck from under a bridge.