Sheffie Posted October 22, 2019 Share Posted October 22, 2019 This railroad bridge is infamous in my local community for its ability to take the top off vans and trucks. The plan is to raise it by just 8 inches, the amount being limited by the railroad grade that has to meet level crossings relatively close to the bridge. https://www.wral.com/durham-s-can-opener-bridge-being-raised/18712577/ 1 Link to comment
railsquid Posted October 22, 2019 Share Posted October 22, 2019 Oooh, I know that bridge (by reputation), it even has its own website: http://11foot8.com/ 1 Link to comment
RogerMc Posted October 22, 2019 Share Posted October 22, 2019 (edited) That's going to reduce the entertainment factor ... Never understood why they didn't just lower the roads, but hey it's a local problem. Edited October 22, 2019 by RogerMc Link to comment
Sheffie Posted October 22, 2019 Author Share Posted October 22, 2019 There’s apparently a four-foot-diameter sewer line right underneath the surface. That’s a major part of the city’s sewer system. 1 Link to comment
RogerMc Posted October 22, 2019 Share Posted October 22, 2019 2 hours ago, Sheffie said: There’s apparently a four-foot-diameter sewer line right underneath the surface. That’s a major part of the city’s sewer system. Aha, I can see how that would complicate things. Link to comment
railsquid Posted October 23, 2019 Share Posted October 23, 2019 5 hours ago, Sheffie said: There’s apparently a four-foot-diameter sewer line right underneath the surface. That’s a major part of the city’s sewer system. So what you're saying is this bridge is a practical demonstration of the phrase "sh*t happens"? 😉 1 Link to comment
cteno4 Posted October 23, 2019 Share Posted October 23, 2019 OMG, I almost took the top off a Uhaul box truck in Virginia on a bridge just like this! I was helping a friend move and we were late getting to her new place in the country and she was pushing me to just go for it. No posted height on it (and none in the truck as well) as I expect ti was scraped off by a previous peel job. Well I stopped with the roof right at it and sure enough it was like right at clearance but any little wiggle would have caught. Route around was like 20+ min and uncertain (pre smartphones and such) so I let the air down in the tires and we squeezed under very slowly and stoped at the first gas station and topped the tires off. Probably took as much time to do the tire deflate and inflate, but soothed my friend as we were proceeding not retreating... but I still whence going under short bridges like this. jeff 1 Link to comment
ben_issacs Posted October 27, 2019 Share Posted October 27, 2019 Folks, Another eight inches (200mm) clearance! Whee!, No more bangs! You've got to be Fred King's brother! The big problem is that most truckies have no idea of the overall height of their vehicles, and even with the over height warning system, they don't take any notice of it. I don't think that the Tee Shirt bloke will loose many sales with this 'improvement'! Regards, Bill, Melbourne (where we have the same problem) Link to comment
RogerMc Posted October 28, 2019 Share Posted October 28, 2019 Preparing to raise the bridge ... Link to comment
Welshbloke Posted October 28, 2019 Share Posted October 28, 2019 The usual problem here is heavy plant on low loaders, driven by people who don't bother to measure the load. A few years ago one managed to snap a 360 earthmover in half, flip the tractor towing it on its side and jam the trailer into the road surface after hitting a local railway bridge at around 30mph. Link to comment
ben_issacs Posted October 29, 2019 Share Posted October 29, 2019 Welshbloke, How would one measure the o.a. height of a high load on a truck or trailer? Climb up on the top of the damn thing with a tape measure? Don't reckon so! Possibly some whizbang electronic device! Regards, Bill, Melbourne. Link to comment
cteno4 Posted October 29, 2019 Share Posted October 29, 2019 Tape measure and a long stick. Use to do it on the aquariums dive boat on the trailer to make sure we knew the height just in case... jeff Link to comment
Socimi Posted October 30, 2019 Share Posted October 30, 2019 On 10/29/2019 at 9:47 AM, ben_issacs said: Welshbloke, How would one measure the o.a. height of a high load on a truck or trailer? Climb up on the top of the damn thing with a tape measure? Don't reckon so! Possibly some whizbang electronic device! Regards, Bill, Melbourne. Generally, traffic regulations specifiy the maximium possible height, width and lenght of a load. Theoretically speaking, companies should check the loading gauge of their trucks (using a device similar to those found on railways) before having them leave the warehouse (this applies to flatbed trucks carrying, for example, an excavator). For fixed body trucks (such as the afromentioned UHaul box truck) instead, the height of the truck is (or atleast, should be) written into the circulation/registration paperworks found on the truck itself. In Saint Petersburg there seems to be another very similar bridge, wich last year got it's 150th stuck truck. Link to comment
ben_issacs Posted October 31, 2019 Share Posted October 31, 2019 Folks, From my rememberance, ISO containers have their heights marked on them, so a quick measurement of the height of the trailer above the road, plus the container height, would give the o.a. height. For box body trucks and trailers, the height would be in the truck specification on record somewhere . The other problem is loads such as heavy machinery or structural items such as pre-fab concrete panels. Checking these could be difficult. No easy solutions! Regards, Bill, Melbourne. Link to comment
Cat Posted January 14, 2020 Share Posted January 14, 2020 Around here, foreign drivers get Storrowed on a regular basis. U-Haul contracts specify that their insurance will not cover you if you take the truck on Storrow Drive. "Repeat after us: You cannot drive a moving truck on Storrow Drive. You cannot drive a moving truck on Storrow Drive. You cannot drive a moving truck on Storrow Drive."https://www.boston.com/news/commute/2018/08/29/how-not-to-get-storrowed-a-quick-guide 3 Link to comment
Tony Galiani Posted January 15, 2020 Share Posted January 15, 2020 Wow - a blast from my past. I lived in Boston in the 1980's and took a U-Haul truck down Storrow Drive once during a house move and almost got "Storrowed"! Didn't know there was a term for it. I had actually checked the truck height and saw the sign on the bridge (though I can't remember now which one it was). I stopped and debated to myself about trying to squeeze under, thinking that the sign might not be completely accurate. In the end common sense, or fear of damaging the truck, won out and I backed the truck down the drive to where I could get off. Not quite sure how I managed to back the truck any distance on Storrow Drive but I have a memory that there was hardly any traffic at the time so I managed it. And considering the usual state of anarchy on Boston's streets, I guess no one was surprised by my move. Cheers, Tony Galiani 1 Link to comment
Cat Posted July 28, 2020 Share Posted July 28, 2020 It is heartening to know that some things in life are still operating at full normal these days. We just had a most beautiful Storrowing this morning:https://www.universalhub.com/2020/kind-storrowing-weve-been-craving 1 Link to comment
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