 |
Re: The View from Behind The Wheel...
Author: George Andrews
Date: 05-25-2013 - 20:35
Yes, the bridge has been hit before, per the Washington State DOT website. The fact that I never saw damage to the bridge means the state did a good job of fixing it up right away. The WS - DOT website has posted the permit for the load; the height was listed as 15 feet 9 inches. Per Federal regs any Interstate highway with less than 16 feet of overhead clearance is supposed to be posted at the site. Again, I do not reacll any SIDE WARNING signs on the Skagit River bridge.
The Pilot Car issue was unknown to me until I looked at the WS - DOT website. While I don't have all the facts regarding how close the truck was to the pilot car, the simple fact is the pilot car driver was assigned to the load to make sure the truck did not hit any low overheads. And this the pilot car driver failed to do. OOPS !!! Although WS - DOT might be assigned a certain amount of culptability, I suspect the Pilot Car driver has a LOT of explaining to do.
Regarding the increase in maximum truck weights since the Interstate system was originally built, it is worth noting that the maximum weight per axle has only increased by 2,000 LBs. Also, the Cooper Bridge Loading formula has insured that older bridges are still able to handle increased loads by spreading out the weight and increasing the number of axles on both the tractor and trailer. Simply said, the more rubber you put on the road, the more weight you can haul. The company I drive for has several 4 axle tractors, featuring an extra axle ahead of the tandem drive axles that can be lowered ( dropped ) with air pumped into the air bags. This "drop axle" is worth an extra 8,000 LBs. We also have 4 and even 5 axle ( w/ drop axle ) trailers that allow us to haul 40 foot ocean containers weighing up to 55,000 LBs, for a total GVW of the tractor, trailer, and load, of 102,000 LBs. ( The boss did not see the need for the 105,500 LBs license, which costs A LOT MORE than the 102,000 LBs license. ) BTW, Michigan allows even higher truck GVWs than Washington and other Western states do. Somewhere around 120,000 LBs GVW as I recall. Again, this requires LOTS of rubber on the road.
The Pilot Car issue was unknown to me until I looked at the WS - DOT website. While I don't have all the facts regarding how close the truck was to the pilot car, the simple fact is the pilot car driver was assigned to the load to make sure the truck did not hit any low overheads. And this the pilot car driver failed to do. OOPS !!! Although WS - DOT might be assigned a certain amount of culptability, I suspect the Pilot Car driver has a LOT of explaining to do.
Regarding the increase in maximum truck weights since the Interstate system was originally built, it is worth noting that the maximum weight per axle has only increased by 2,000 LBs. Also, the Cooper Bridge Loading formula has insured that older bridges are still able to handle increased loads by spreading out the weight and increasing the number of axles on both the tractor and trailer. Simply said, the more rubber you put on the road, the more weight you can haul. The company I drive for has several 4 axle tractors, featuring an extra axle ahead of the tandem drive axles that can be lowered ( dropped ) with air pumped into the air bags. This "drop axle" is worth an extra 8,000 LBs. We also have 4 and even 5 axle ( w/ drop axle ) trailers that allow us to haul 40 foot ocean containers weighing up to 55,000 LBs, for a total GVW of the tractor, trailer, and load, of 102,000 LBs. ( The boss did not see the need for the 105,500 LBs license, which costs A LOT MORE than the 102,000 LBs license. ) BTW, Michigan allows even higher truck GVWs than Washington and other Western states do. Somewhere around 120,000 LBs GVW as I recall. Again, this requires LOTS of rubber on the road.
