it finally happened to me, staring at a low clearance i cant make

i've been down a few roads in the middle of the country. where there are no signs till you get RIGHT to the bridge.

i even had a delivery in kansas city, only road into this place. bridges on both sides. thank goodness i drive a midroof with a flat. my stall stacks barely cleared.

there's a road you take to get from durango, co to gallup, nm. when you get into gallup there are signs that say all trucks must enter the port west of gallup. the first exit you can take going westbound to get to the scale is a 270 degree exit UNDER the freeway and back on going eastbound. not enough clearance for vans. which means going down further to arizona. but you don't know that becuase there's no signs untill your staring that bridge right in the face.

the scale is basically 15 miles out of route. 30 miles round trip. farther if your driving a van.

wonder how many trucks actually follow those signs. cuz your talking AT LEAST $25 in fuel.

 

I found a low bridge in Tuscon of all places, missed the first warning sign, get to the bridge and sure enough it says 12' 11". I stopped for a second, realized that there was a sidewalk to the left with a big open dirt area behind it. Hit the left Turn signal, ran over the sidewalk and flipped a U in the field. Came right back out in the road where I crossed the side walk the first time. Got lucky about a few things. Time of day meant no traffic and I spotted the clearance before entering the under crossing so I didn't have to back out.

 

LOL...when i was a student, maybe 2 weeks under my belt, making a pick-up in the heart of Washington DC. I could see the customer, but none of several converging roads appeard to go there and directions said bear right. So I bear right and end up on couple hundred feet down the road on Rock Creek Parkway. First bridge was 12'8 on the side and 13'6 in the middle. Idled under the center and grabbed the exit ramp as I got under it. The next bridge was 12'3 so I don't think we would have made that even at the center!

My pick up was at the Kennedy Center, a piece of artwork going to Mexico. Had a few laughs about the bridge, the Kennedy Center didn't even have a loading dock so we pulled right up front by the fountains, where the limos drop the senators for the opera and stuff! Scary experience became a great story for my trainer and I to tell.

Great thread!

 

Lol that so funny because i take that highway twice weekly between larado and ogden and I have NEVER obeyed that sign! And now I am glad i don't!! Dont need to top out and i dont need an extra 1/2 hr or more taken from my drive time. Havent had a prob with DOT enforcing it either way

 

Nyc as a newbie, didn't realize until after this that they account for snow pack. Sign reads all trucks over 12' 11" must exit no signs on the ramp after that. No trucks in front of me so I got off. Oops! Guy is sitting in a wheel chair at the bottom of the ramp as I'm sitting there DUMB founded. Guy in the wheel chair gets on my steps says for $18.50 he would direct me through Manhattan. I had mo choice, he rode on my steps holding on to the door and mirror giving us a tour of Manhattan, describing all the land marks. We drove past dozens of cops and firetrucks etc nobody even looked twice. As I pulled away from the light at the bottom of the ramp another guy got off a bus and sat in the wheelchair waiting for the next truck. Oh and guess what.....










The guy didn't have change for a $20 bill. Go figure!

He got on the bus after the tour and headed back for his spot.

 

One of the first times in Chicago, going east on North Av, came to a bridge marked 12'6". I was 13'6", so I turned right on the side street, and went around the block, coming back out on North. Staring at this bridge, I saw tractor trailers coming westbound, and they were clearing it. So I figured I'd try it, not thinking westbound was maybe higher.
Put the 4 ways on, and crawled up to it, got out and looked, seemed OK. Ended up crawling under it with no problems, bridge was mis marked. But there is another bridge that IS 12'6", right past the Kennedy expressway, that nails about 1 truck a week.

When I hauled shingles around Chicago, had a Pete daycab, that the stacks were cut down to 11'6", and pulling a flatbed, never had a problem.

 

I have seen the one there in Philly myself. My roof is still intact also.... LOL

 

only been on it twice. i usually take the 550 out of durango into albuquerque. bypassing cortez.

30 miles shorter