11' 8" Truck-eating bridge in Durham, N.C.

[meyer77]

Does the driver normally get the permits? I could be wrong, but I would think the shipper would be responsible for that.

[Crusty]

Permits aren't required for vehicles within standard size limits, but if oversize then the driver is required to have a permit with routing on it and usually those are arranged by the driver's dispatch office. Most of the vehicles in the first video were within standard limits but "permit not required" is no defense for careless vehicle operation. The driver in the second video is probably selling shoes now.

Vehicles carrying hazardous materials (propane for instance) are required to follow designated HazMat routes regardless of size, and a proposed day care center located along one (railroads are too) won't get a license to operate.

[Frank S]

About all a shipper does is provide the item/s to be shipped and pay money the agent sometimes called a dispatcher does indeed arrange for most permits but not always, many haulers operate as independent contractors running under the flags of which ever trucking company they are leased to. In these cases a hauler may use the resources of the company's assets through their dispatchers and agents to arrange for their over dimensional, and special use permits or they might contact permitting agencies direct. Then again not all permits can be pre arranged in all states by a single or even multiple permit issuing facilities. there are still some states where the permits may be applied for in advance but must be picked up at the ports of entry. Ultimately whether a driver is hauling a load of dispatcher brains IE and empty trailer, hauling a single gram of something that will destroy all life on earth or trying to haul something the size of the State of Texas the final responsibility to make sure everything is all legal with the "T"s dotted and the "I"s crossed belongs to the guy with the steering wheel in his hands.

[EnginePaul]

Looking at that video, I would think that if the rental companies chipped in, they could pay to have the road bed lowered and be dollars ahead in no time. That is one strong overpass!

[tooly]

I wonder what it would cost to redress the road 6" lower, it must have been a possible answer.

[Frank S]

I wonder what it would cost to redress the road 6" lower, it must have been a possible answer.

depending on the footing they could probably lower the road a full 12 inches but that would mean redressing it a 100 feet to either side still should be cheaper than the alternatives they are faced with every time a delivery van type vehicle attempts to drive under

[Crusty]

The problem with lowering the road is that it can then become a drainage pond and expensive plumbing has to be installed to carry away rainwater. It's much cheaper to install warning signs and make drivers who cannot pass take another route.

The railroads were often built long before there were roads in the area and since grade is a big deal to railway architects they were intentionally kept as flat as possible. Later on someone decided that Model T's could cross under them in certain places and the major crossing design elements became locked in. Other people then came along and built stuff along the roadways, further locking the design.

Imagine a neighborhood treehouse that generations of kids have adopted for a while and each subsequent group changed it how they saw fit. That's similar to the way that our road system developed before Eisenhower first saw the Autobahn.

[kb4mdz]

11 ft 8 bridge was raised, to 12 ft 4, in October of 2019.

Raising 11foot8 - 11 FOOT 8

Some of the problems of changing anything was 1) The bridge belongs to the railroad, and they didn't have much incentive to fix it, esp. since it involved raising the railroad, and bed, for a good distance in either direction, 2) The City of Durham installed warning signs, as if that's enough, 3) NC DOT maintains the road, and 4) there are sewer lines underneath the road, so lowering the road would entail tackling that little situation. Yeah, little situation. That's what she said.

Has it stopped all crashes? No, but they have lessened somewhat. There are still drivers out there who will ... crash, rip, tear up and such.

Much more description on that 11 ft 8 sight.