South East Street bike path overpassThat one too has a low clearance, but at 10 feet still matches what the Snell Street Bridge will rise to after the state spends $1 million.
On Sunday around dusk, a new-to-the-area driver piloting a Ryder rental truck was jolted by the sudden piercing screech of metal scraping metal. A confrontation the bridge, even as old as it is, always seems to win.
Hmm, I wonder how much could be saved by a series of lighted warning signs? Hundreds of thousands I would guess. Of course, for a million bucks you could probably employ two people with flashlights to wave drivers off for a lot of years.
ReplyDeleteI think we should get that robot who said, "Warning! Warning, Will Robinson" so that there would be lights AND sound to warn people.
ReplyDeleteThe day I moved to Amherst, five years ago, I very nearly pulled that exact maneuver. I knew the bridge was there, I knew the truck would be too tall, but I was tired and forgot, until the last minute.
ReplyDeleteGiven the terms of the rental contract, I would have owed the Uhaul company at least $5,000 to repair that truck, as there were about a dozen insurance disclaimers covering that sort of idiocy.
What sort of protocol does the Fire Department have for responding to call from that section of SE street between the two railroad bridges? Do they take a detour through the Amherst campus?
Most emergency/fire vehicles are a bit under 9'6"....
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