New Technology To Prevent Bridge Strikes Deployed Along Hutchinson River Parkway
Originally published in
CBS2 New York
A bridge over a busy parkway in Westchester County has a dubious distinction: It has been hit by trucks almost 150 times in the last 10 years.
That’s more than any other bridge in the state.
Now new technology is in place to put the brakes on the bridge strikes.
The King Street Bridge on the Hutchinson River Parkway is right on the New York/Connecticut state line. Twenty four times last year, a truck illegally driving on the Hutch has struck it, often shaking the Cassese home a block away.
“Big impact, echoing explosion. Absolutely wakes us up out of our sleep,” said homeowner Chris Cassese.
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“Somebody who couldn’t get to school, couldn’t get to a doctor’s appointment. This has been a perennial source of frustration in this community,” said St. Sen. Shelley Mayer.
Last year, County Executive George Latimer made this a priority. Now, the payoff has come: Almost $2 million in new infrared detectors near Exits 26 and 29. When an overheight truck drives past and breaks the infrared beam, warning signs light up telling the vehicles to exit immediately.
The state also added almost a dozen variable message signs now on the shoulder, warning trucks they don’t belong on the parkway. They also added multiple additional signs warning of low clearances.