Governor Hochul Announces New Measures to Mitigate Bridge Strikes in Upstate New York

 

Road Safety Enhancements Being Deployed Along Onondaga Lake Parkway in Onondaga County and Glenridge Road in Schenectady County

 Governor Kathy Hochul announced that new measures are being implemented this week in the Capital Region and Central New York intended to reduce collisions with low-clearance railroad bridges. These new safety enhancements, put in place by New York State Department of Transportation, are being employed along the Onondaga Lake Parkway in the Village of Liverpool and the Town of Salina, Onondaga County, and along Glenridge Road in the Town of Glenville, Schenectady County. Both roads travel under railroad bridges with posted clearances of 10 feet 9 inches and 10 feet 11 inches, respectively.

“The measures being put in place this week will help calm traffic and provide clear warnings to truck drivers in danger of striking low-clearance overpasses in Upstate New York,” Governor Hochul said. “Bridge strikes create hazardous situations for drivers and first responders and cause unnecessary inconveniences for local communities. These new systems will build on the numerous steps already taken to prevent these needless bridge strikes.”

Glenridge Road Rail Bridge

In Glenville, a multi-pronged effort is being put in place by NYSDOT to reduce instances of trucks and other vehicles striking the Canadian Pacific Railway-owned bridge that carries the rail line over Glenridge Road. A state-of-the-art vehicle detection system, which uses infrared sensors, flashing beacons, floodlights, and cameras, was fully operational by Thursday, August 31.

The Department of Transportation installed two sets of infrared detectors along with two electronic message boards and two new flashing beacons for vehicles heading westbound, which is the direction of travel in which the majority of bridge strikes have occurred. There is one set of detectors and message boards for vehicles heading eastbound. Additionally, six new permanent cameras will work in conjunction with the over-height detection system.

When an over-height vehicle disrupts the continuity of the newly installed infrared beams, the system will trigger nearby beacons to flash floodlights to shine on the bridge, and electronic message boards will post a warning to the operator that their vehicle is too tall to fit underneath the bridge.

The mobilization of this active warning system is the latest step in immediate and long-term plans announced in November 2021 by the Department of Transportation to reduce the number of bridge strikes at the Glenridge Road overpass. Last summer, the Department completed the construction of a vehicle turnaround area approximately 500 feet ahead of the railroad overpass for westbound vehicles.

In January 2022, the Department activated flashing beacons above and below low-clearance warning signs in advance of the bridge in both directions. Additionally, 14 signs have long been in place in both directions over a 0.9-mile stretch of Glenridge Road warning truckers of the low clearance bridge just east of Hetcheltown Road. This includes nine advance signs in the westbound direction over approximately three-quarters of a mile. Pavement markings displaying similar warnings ahead of the bridge are consistently refreshed.

Onondaga Lake Parkway

Also known as State Route 370, Onondaga Lake Parkway is located within Onondaga Lake Park and runs along the northern shore of Onondaga Lake, parallel to Old Liverpool Road, between the Interstate 81 interchange and the Village of Liverpool. The CSX-owned railroad bridge near the midpoint of the parkway has been subject to frequent collisions with over-height vehicles.

This week, as part of a series of safety enhancements announced in June 2023, the parkway is being reduced to one lane in each direction, for a distance of 1200 feet on each side of the railroad bridge, which is intended to calm traffic and give over-height vehicles additional time to heed the warning signs and avoid the bridge. The lane restrictions will remain in place as NYSDOT assess their effectiveness and their impact on traffic conditions.

The new enhancements being added augment the nearly 50 countermeasures currently in place along both sides of the bridge, which include signs, flashing beacons, pavement markings, variable message signs, and an electronic over-height vehicle detection system.

New, ground-mounted and overhead signs with graphical “No Trucks” messaging are making it easier for drivers with limited English proficiency to understand. Additionally, plans are in place for an upgrade of the existing over-height detection system with additional sensors to improve accuracy, incorporation of LED blank out signs with a graphical “No Trucks” message that will activate when an over-height vehicle is detected, and the installation of a traditional, three-phase traffic signal near the bridge that would turn red when an over-height vehicle is detected.

In addition, the entrance ramp to the parkway from Interstate 81 northbound, which is currently closed, will remain closed as NYSDOT assesses the impact and effectiveness of the lane reduction on the parkway.

NYSDOT continues to alert drivers of over-height vehicles that consumer GPS and cell phone mapping systems do not include warnings for bridge heights, which puts them at risk of collisions. Commercial-grade GPS systems, on the other hand, account for and include height, weight, and other road restrictions.

The Department continues to partner and meet with local and state elected officials and the Trucking Association of New York to ensure that truckers use proper routes.

New York State Department of Transportation Commissioner Marie Therese Dominguez said, “Onondaga Lake Parkway and Glenridge Road have seen far too many bridge strikes involving trucks and other over-height vehicles in recent years, which can cause unnecessary hazards to local motorists and first responders. Bridge strikes are 100 percent preventable, and operators of over-height vehicles need to drive safely, pay attention to the new and existing warnings in place, and use commercial-grade GPS navigation systems. I thank Governor Hochul for her support and commitment to the safety of all those who drive in New York.”

EDITOR'S NOTE:

How about the Henry Hudson Parkway overpasses in the Bronx where trucks are hitting the West 239th and West 246th overpasses on a regular basis Governor Hochul?