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Impressive display of truck-driving skills in Somerville
By adamg on Fri, 06/14/2013 - 11:39am
Alexandra Sear photographed a stuck truck at McGrath Highway and Washington Street in Somerville this morning.
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Comments
y'know
...this is totally the fault of the powerful bike lobby.
He would've had room to make
He would've had room to make the turn if it weren't for the bike lane.
Yeah, no
Unfortunately, neither bike lanes, nor even bikers in them, stop truck drivers.
The problem is that these trucks DO NOT BELONG IN OUR CITIES.
Yeah, wrong...
your comment has to be one of the most inane comments I have ever read on UHUB. Troll, much?
"Trucks do not belong in our cities." Right. Hey, I know, why don't we attach a trailer to your bike (I am making an assumption that you have one) and have you pull hundreds upon hundreds of pounds of product that these trucks transport daily to to wherever (whether it is 1 mile or 100 miles) it has to be delivered?
Feeling stupid yet?
Calm down, breath
Better?
Ok, now think rationally. I hear the argument all the time from people regarding bike lanes. "Our streets aren't wide enough." "This city wasn't designed for bikes and cars to be on the same road."
Guess what? Our streets actually aren't wide enough for some of these trucks to turn legally or move through our streets safely. The image Anon posted shows this, as we see an 18 wheeler making an illegal right turn from the left lane, cutting across two lanes of traffic and fatally striking a cyclist that had the right of way. If that truck cannot make that right hand turn legally and safely, then that truck is too big for our streets.
Smaller trucks can and should be moving goods through our city. Yes it will add to the overhead costs of moving goods around but it'll result in vehicles that are better designed to navigate our streets safely.
Logistically your thought
Logistically your thought makes complete sense... have the big rigs haul the product to distribution centers on the outskirts of the city to be distributed by smaller, more agile trucks through Boston's narrow streets.
But realistically, it'll be a cold day in hell when companies who pay for shipping via truck, have to shell out more to pay individuals to unload the rigs, reload the smaller trucks, and drivers to make those deliveries. Oh, and I'm assuming there'd have to be management staff to run those distribution centers.
I suppose it would take the passage of a law to make it illegal for 18-wheelers to drive through a certain radius in and around Boston. So I can understand both sides of the story here.
I obviously don't have the answers, but this truck nonsense (regarding bridges and/or pedestrians) seems to happen at a weekly rate, so it seems something should be done, although I doubt it'll be anytime in the near future.
Brr, I'm freezing
My neighbor did the math and has done just that - uses his big rigs to move stuff around regionally and delivers with sprinter vans.
The equipment is cheaper, he was able to secure more contracts because he has the flexibility of having more units that can deliver anywhere, and thus he makes more money despite hiring and employing more people. He can also move the vans around more easily between cities to meet different delivery demands on a day to day basis than he could with the box trucks.
I guess that's the difference between a business run by an independent owner with a spreadsheet and engineering degree, rather than a corporate sub-office taking orders from business school graduates and a culture of "don't hire anybody ever".
Is there a story to which you don't have a personal connection?
I mean, come on swirly. Not every story can be analogized to some person or event in your life. Moreover, you are arguing from the specific to the general, a fatal logical flaw. What worked for your "neighbor's" company is not necessarily relevant to the larger issue.
trux
That is a pretty good idea, and I'm glad someone's doing it, using smaller vans to move stuff in congested areas. But you're still going to have truckers with no idea of that system or how to get around the city. Why do the planners put in so many low overpasses, tight corners and impossible situations? Ever try to take a truck from Haymarket to Kenmore? You can't go down Storrow Drive, and you certainly can't take it on the T. I don't need directions, but city planners ought to think about this. How is anyone supposed to get a truck from Point A to Point B? If your answer is, "you can't get theah from heah," then you haven't earned your six-figure paycheck. If the roads are impossible and impassable, don't blame the truckers.
That's the point, genius. If
That's the point, genius. If you have a network of smaller trucks doing "last mile" deliveries, they will know the area, and how to get around.
Also, it may astonish you to learn that 18-wheeler tractor-trailers weren't actually considered at the time that Haymarket and Kenmore Square were developed. Are you proposing that we tear down the whole city and rebuild it just to accommodate large trucks?
Illegal Turn
Which way was the cyclist traveling that he had the right of way? And FYI, most trucks, in cities or not in cities, have to swing wide to make turns. The problems come when other drivers (cars, bikes, etc.) try to beat them to the turn, or zip around them, or hang on to the trailer to pull them along, or don't stay behind the white line when they're at a stop light/sign. The majority of accidents between big rigs and passenger vehicles are cause by the passenger vehicles. And you might know that if you paid attention, oh I don't know..ever.
NO EXCUSES
The problem is when a tractor trailer in the LEFTMOST LANE OF A THREE LANE ROAD (Car, Car, bike) suddenly crosses BLOCKS THE ENTIRE ROADWAY and crosses TWO LANES OF TRAFFIC to make a turn.
The law says you must make a turn from the lane closest to that side of the road. There is no exception for trucks. If your truck can't make the turn legally, you shouldn't be making the turn.
Remember, NO EXCUSES.
No excuse for traffic calming idiots
What there is no excuse for is shit for brains "livable" advocates who make roads more dangerous with bump outs, neck downs, and curb extensions! Those things make truck turns impossible without entering another lane. The idiots at MIT and Cambridge Planning departments made Vassar Street and Mass Ave intersection too narrow to negotiate between those two TRUCK ROUTES! The BU kid who got killed last year in Alston got squeezed between a MBTA bus and a huge bulb out that supposedly made pedestrians more safe.
Hence, exceptions are needed. The situation you describe was the fault of the cyclist for speeding down the hill and not stopping. Yeah, even car drivers stop to prevent accidents even when they might have the right of way. A truck turning has to yield for pedestrians crossing the side street, so could be blocking the road longer than ideal. There is no way for a big truck to turn there without crossing lanes, like more and more roads as they get narrowed and have slip lanes removed.
They should have gotten a
They should have gotten a smaller truck. How much stuff do you think he was actually delivering?
it's called Last Mile Delivery, and bikes are doing it just fine
Hey, I know, why don't we attach a trailer to your bike (I am making an assumption that you have one) and have you pull hundreds upon hundreds of pounds of product
You mean like this last-mile delivery company in Somerville, which delivers all over the Metro-Boston area? They supply a number of businesses and farm share customers:
How about this last-mile delivey company in Paris, which handles deliveries to the inner zone where trucks are heavily restricted? They carry up to 1000lb or so of goods:
Jeez, bunch of dirty French hippies, right? If only a major international cargo delivery company used them. OH HEY, look at that, DHL does, so does Fedex:
Maybe it's some crazy newfangled thing brought about by those crazy bike nut jobs, eh? OH WAIT, here's a 1900's dutch cargo bike capable of hauling 1000lb+:
Great, with all the proposed
Great, with all the proposed construction of high rise buildings going up, I can't wait to see these guys hauling some heavy ass steel girders. Oh, don't forget cranes and other heavy equipment as well.
Let me know how it works out.
Time and a place
They don't deliver cranes and steel girders on 18 wheelers with box trailers. Those come on specific wide load vehicles with escort cars with flashing lights. And those are fairly rare compared to the goods delivery vehicles referred to.
The trucks in question do deliver crap like orange juice and toilet paper and clothing on a regular basis in 18 wheelers in the city. Each stop or store does not use the entire content of said trucks, typically a delivery will consist of a single pallet or less from the truck.
Thus such trucks are not necessary when said pallet can fit in a van or small box truck.
A few, smaller vehicles could cover the same territory as one of those trucks do. And the cost difference, if there even is one, is at best marginal.
Smaller trucks or vans not only take up less room on the road, but they also are quieter, better for the road itself (18 wheelers are the leading cause of extreme road wear), and better for the environment.
Add a motor and its globally ubiquitous
Delivery vehicles like those above are all over India, southeast Asia, and elsewhere. Converted small motorbikes allow for greater loads, hills, longer distances, and faster service than limiting power to human sources. Too bad Mass registration and insurance requirements get in the way. Neither will be enough for many stores or even delivering typical American sized appliances. The other problem is having centralized shipping hubs that are far more than a mile from delivery destinations. Trucks load up a day's worth of deliveries in the morning and that's it. A bicyclist picking up produce in Chelsea to deliver all around Boston has lots of extra work hauling multiple deliveries.
Huge pictures much?
And also, this IS NOT EUROPE. Get it through your damn heads.
Don't Worry You're Not Using Dialup Anymore
And also, this SHOULD BE MORE LIKE EUROPE BECAUSE IT SUCKS THE WAY IT IS NOW WITH BIG TRUCKS SQUISHING PEOPLE LIKE GRAPES AND RAMMING BRIDGES AND BEING LOUD AND FAT ASSED. Get that through your damn head.
But, but, but... Europe! Ew!
But, but, but... Europe! Ew! It's icky!
USA! USA! USA!
DAMN STRAIGHT BRO!!! WHAT COULD A SMALL, SEVENTEENTH-CENTURY CITY WITH NARROW, WINDING ROADS POSSIBLY LEARN ABOUT TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT FROM A FRUITY FRENCH COUNTRY LIKE EUROPE!!!1!1eleven
falsie
Wow. Do you even know Somerville? There is no bike lane there.
WHOOSH!
WHOOSH!
Ha ha ha!
There's no bike lane there!
I'm sure there's some good reason for this
Like, the driver didn't notice there was a bridge there.
Or the driver couldn't be expected to know the height of the truck.
Or THE DRIVER WAS WORKING! HOW DARE THAT BEAM AND LOW CLEARANCE INTERFERE!
sshhhhh!
I'm trying to use the phone!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EBDiYuEkP4M
There should've been a sign warning truck drivers of low clrance
A sign warning truck drivers of low clearance should've been on that bridge.
Looks like his rear wheels may have caused the problem.
The left rear of the truck is up on a sidewalk. Is there a photo looking at the truck from its other side? I'm wondering if the right side of the truck is ok since it may not be elevated.
IT'S THE SIDEWALK THAT'S THE PROBLEM!!
Seriously, what kind of losers WALK?
Only...
...a nobody.
But this is Boston
not LA
Can't plus this enuff!
.
Nobody walks in L.A.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I3CF7xwoglU
I think that is also why the
I think that is also why the tractor made it through fine but obviously the trailer did not. And if he hadn't hopped the curb, the whole tractor/trailer combo probably is just within the clearance height.
truck stuck in overpass
Does no one recognize the height of the truck is not the issue here? It hit the pillar holding up the road, not the roadway itself. The problem is geometry not height. The truck was not able to make this corner, he was able to move under the bridge. This intersection is not built to handle trucks. There are no indications the truck driver unfamiliar with Somerville would know this to be true.
Avoid the sidewalk...
...and avoid the pillar. Well, maybe he at least learned a valuable driving lesson.
Truck vs bridge has been
Truck vs bridge has been going on forever . Dude was from out of state ( foreign tags on tractor ) , unfamiliar with the setup, maybe a bit over-whelmed by the kamikaze drivers around him , and let his guard down and shorted his turn. Maybe if a few people gave him a break and let him turtle through his turn, this wouldnt have happened. Trucks been rolling through that area before most of you guys were born , maybe some diapers and Similac came from down the street at the Firstie's warehouse. But the dude driving is just trying to make his daily bread here. He didnt make the rules, probably like to be tooling in a 38' , 40' , 42' trailer. But today 53' is the king , maybe a 48'. That's trucking, high speed internet style , big time gigabyte. Bigger is better , you all remember that when shopping at the big boxes. And those last mile things , please , maybe to consolidate envelopes or pizza, but real world consumption, forget about it .
Out of state tags does not
Out of state tags does not mean you're from out of state. I'm from New York, live in Arizona, the tag on my tractor is out of Illinois, and the tags on my trailer are out of Maine. I drive 150,000 miles a year and probably have been to more cities and under more city bridges than you'll see in a lifetime. Shit happens. And in NY, for instance, almost ALL of the bridge heights are marked incorrectly. Real problem. Some drivers are unfamiliar with the area, some do try to get under bridges they can't clear, but most of the industry is made up of professionals that put safety first. We are regulated by federally mandated rules and could drive circles around any other driver on the road. Usually you're just pissed that we're in your way when you're in a big rush to get to the Starbucks, or grocery store or mall or local bar. Why don't you think a minute about how all that stuff GOT to the places you go buy it from?
Raise the Overpass!
Trolling of the day comment:
When the McGrath Overpass gets rebuilt, it needs to be made higher with more clearance!
...wait for it.....
....cue it up!
No! That overpass needs to be torn down, not rebuilt!
They should tear that byzantine eyesore of a structure down instead of spending 11 million bucks to repair it.
Conspiracy theory
The Birkenstock Illuminati Bike Mafia of Granola hired this poor hapless driver to crash into the overpass and demonstrate how multi-lane overpasses are fundamentally incompatible with urban villiage transit wonderlands of tomorrow!
the isue is the trucker made
the isue is the trucker made a mistake he should have noticed the close proximity of the bcement beams holding up the bridge... trucks go thru there all the time. the real issue is this crap about bike lanes, for me, I am personally tired of bikers who dont have any regard for the road crossing when they shouldnt, taking up space sometimes beyond their lane and tehy usually dont obey traffic signs or lights, but its called bribery money. city doesnt get extra money to fund roads unless they put in bike lanes for those roads.... you want my money, you need to put in bike lanes.... And trucks are used to taking wider than average turns, their own trucks say in rear, this truck takes wide turns Maybe the city would like to set up signs everywhere thru somerville , like detour signs,t aht say truck route, considering the amount of commercial space in our city, it would be interesting what those routes would look like and how they think a trucker wold go from union sq to say sullivan otherwise? (without crossing mcgrath and without going 20 minutes out of their way
OH MY GOD THEY TAKE UP SPACE
OH MY GOD THEY TAKE UP SPACE BEYOND THEIR LANE!!! THAT'S HORRIBLE!!! I'M GLAD CARS AND TRUCKS NEVER DO THAT!!!1!1!one
If you are loading up a semi trailer
To take things from Union Square to Sullivan Square
Then U R doing it wrong.