Company Driver Punished for hitting Unmarked Bridge.

Ummmm.....

 

and a 1 liter Diet Coke for a buck...

The whole point of this story is that your friend did not do his job and neither were you. If you had been in the lead, would you have gone under that bridge? Sounds like it to me. This is a learning experience. I'll bet from now on, whenever you go under a bridge, you'll be sure of the height...

 

i still think he wants to impress us with his literary genius.......

maybe Oprah can use him for her book club.......???

 

Great story, predictable ending!

 

I have been MIA on this board, haven't posted a word in a while but this discussion here got to me.

I was burnt the first time I came on here to ask some newbie questions. One of our members was kind enough to send me a PM

So i did the same for the thread starter.

If Ryo is a lawyer trucker, an English teacher, a literature writer or what not,

. It's interesting to note that we don't come here to impress ourselves, if someone decides to express himself without dishing out insults or violating the rules of the forum, why burn him for inspiring my 2nd grade truck crazy nephew? I am sure someone somewhere will enjoy his piece, it doesn't have to be you. Grammatical errors, spellings, convention or sentence structures,

if English is his fourth language? I just have to say I am delighted there are a lot of educated folks around me. Lets look back, take a systematic approach to answering the questions posted here.

Whether the story is fiction on fact, again

if it educates some of us.


"Chapter 2C. Warning Signs

Section 2C.01 Function of Warning Signs
Support:
Warning signs call attention to unexpected conditions on or adjacent to a highway or street and to situations that might not be readily apparent to road users. Warning signs alert road users to conditions that might call for a reduction of speed or an action in the interest of safety and efficient traffic operations.
Section 2C.02 Application of Warning Signs
Standard:
The use of warning signs shall be based on an engineering study or on engineering judgment.
Guidance:
The use of warning signs should be kept to a minimum as the unnecessary use of warning signs tends to breed disrespect for all signs. In situations where the condition or activity is seasonal or temporary, the warning sign should be removed or covered when the condition or activity does not exist.
Section 2C.22 Low Clearance Signs (W12-2 and W12-2p)

Standard:
The Low Clearance (W12-2) sign (see#Figure 2C-3) shall be used to warn road users of clearances less than 300 mm (12 in) above the statutory maximum vehicle height.
Guidance:
The actual clearance should be shown on the Low Clearance sign to the nearest 25 mm (1 in) not exceeding the actual clearance. However, in areas that experience changes in temperature causing frost action, a reduction, not exceeding 75 mm (3 in), should be used for this condition.
Where the clearance is less than the legal maximum vehicle height, the W12-2 sign with a supplemental distance plaque should be placed at the nearest intersecting road or wide point in the road at which a vehicle can detour or turn around.
In the case of an arch or other structure under which the clearance varies greatly, two or more signs should be used as necessary on the structure itself to give information as to the clearances over the entire roadway.
Clearances should be evaluated periodically, particularly when resurfacing operations have occurred.
Option:
The Low Clearance sign may be installed on or in advance of the structure. If a sign is placed on the structure, it may be a rectangular shape (W12-2p) with the appropriate legend (see Figure 2C-3).
Chapter 2C. Warning Signs
Section 2C.01#Function of Warning Signs
Support:
Warning signs call attention to unexpected conditions on or adjacent to a highway or street and to situations that might not be readily apparent to road users. Warning signs alert road users to conditions that might call for a reduction of speed or an action in the interest of safety and efficient traffic operations.
Section 2C.02#Application of Warning Signs
Standard:
The use of warning signs shall be based on an engineering study or on engineering judgment.
Guidance:
The use of warning signs should be kept to a minimum as the unnecessary use of warning signs tends to breed disrespect for all signs. In situations where the condition or activity is seasonal or temporary, the warning sign should be removed or covered when the condition or activity does not exist."

These were his questions....

"what happens if a driver hits an unmarked bridge, not listed in the RM atlas and on an industrial non restricted area. How does DOT look at this? What scenarios constitute preventability on the part of the driver? What position can a driver take to argue his innocence..i.e that he did everything he could to avoid such incident? And lastly, What can a driver do to defend himself against reprimandation by an employer when in the light of such predicaments?

1.Why vertical clearance signs, weight and restriction are posted on most bridges in the first place?

2. Coming from a legal standpoint, is it required by law or statute that a low clearance bridge on a non restricted industrial roadway be posted?

3. In the case of accidents leading to loss of life or property, who can be held liable?

4. And lastly but not the least, What is the difference between preventability and guilt/ fault. When can an individual be held accountable for not preventing an accident, can that individual be also considered to not be at fault/ guilty at the same time.??

5. Is it a feasible argument that in absence of any measuring device such as DOT certified well calibrated lasers, ruler or tapes installed on vehicles susceptible to strike a low bridge, devices that minimizes the problem of human error; allowing the driver an opportunity to accurately gauge the height of a bridge ahead, a driver is expected to accurately#GUESS#whether the vehicle can safely go under an unmarked bridge on a non restricted roadway.???

All comments were valid; but most were general thus falling short of specifics.

After going through the link, I wonder if the trains above were derailed resulting to an#immensely substantial catastrophic#amount of casualties (try to picture the worst here), will the employer/employee assume "personal responsiblities" arguing that their driver was at fault; neglecting safety rules and preventive measures. Proceeding with reprimands or even terminating the driver (driver wont have to go to jail since the local authorities did not cite him nor did he violate any dot provision), then goes that extra distance in making everyone else and families suffering from the ordeal whole? OR will the employer save itself legal headaches by simply pointing out the link you posted?#

Since you emphatically pointed out the R word. Is it a safe assumption you implied the driver was "rammed" in the rear by the people he worked for?"

Just rubbing my two cents together, please do yourself a favour, don't charge me with plagiarism, I have been there before. Secondly, reserve you personal comments for those who get reved up by it, I don't get off from it.

 

Germane to the discussion. This bridge is marked 13'6" -- one reader comment suggests that the road was resurfaced, so it's less than 13'6" now. Article contains pictures and mentions that one driver got stuck twice.

http://www.wickedlocal.com/brockton...d-under-Court-Street-bridge-in-Brockton?img=4

It says 13'6" -- would you try it?

There's a reader comment that Brockton should hang chains in front of the bridge. In Texas, I don't remember the town, they did that. Attached to the hanging chains was a sign: "If you hit the chains, you will hit the bridge." Don't recall if they specified the clearance, but I guess they got tired of trucks hitting the bridge.

 

There is a bridge in upstate NY that shows 12'6" but we used to go under it all the time.. it was not too far from Buffalo just down a highway from some amusment park.. Loads of skid marks on both sides from guys stopping fast.. I heard tell that New York does that for snow pack??? Not 100% sure on that... but as I said the driver is the one on the hook for anything once he hits the road.. alsdo I remeber one time a driver was beiing directed (ground guide) by a security guard and hit a small building... the driver was at fault even though some one was guiding him

 

You have that correct.

Sorry dispatch sent me the wrong way in Chicago. Almost every street I tried had small heights. A local cop saw me and finally told me the way around.

Later closer to the delivery point, there was an unmarked bridge. I sat for a long time and could not tell the height. I met many flat top flat beds coming through and I had a condo with a van. I finally contacted dispatch and got a route around the suspect bridge.

 

Granted I'm a newb, but are the height marks for the highest point, or the highest PASSABLE point?....i.e. arch stye bridge, is measurment taken at the highest point of the arc, or the lowest part over the street?