Another truck gets stuck on Elgin Road
Many motorists are in favour of overhead chains being erected again, as was the case years ago
YET another truck got stuck under the Elgin Road subway on Saturday, leaving numerous motorists fuming.
Many took to Facebook to express their disgust at the metro’s unwillingness to do something about the situation.
Anita-Jayne Sinclair wrote: “I am getting seriously worried about the damage to this bridge! If trucks keep getting stuck under it, what damage are they doing? Who actually assesses if there is any damage to the bridge and what impact this may have on the safety of drivers travelling under it?
“How long before the bridge collapses when a train is going over it? Stop access for trucks on Elgin Road – full stop! I am nervous every time I drive under the bridge due to all the episodes that have happened over the past few years.”
Sinclair said they got caught up in this tangle when coming back from a course in Midrand. “After our detour, we eventually saw the front of the truck managing to pull through the bridge but the damage to the pantechnicon was terrible.
“My solution to this regular event – get the municipality to erect something on Elgin Road before the traffic lights at the Olienhout intersection that hits the truck on the roof to tell them they are too high for the bridge. This is just ridiculous. It seems to be a regular occurrence at least twice a month.
“Or just put up a sign saying that trucks are banned on Elgin Road, take the Kaalfontein or CR Swart Drive route.
Many were in favour of overhead chains being erected again, as was the case years ago.
When Express approached the metro about the situation in September, they said they had in the past considered various alternatives in dealing with trucks getting stuck underneath the bridge. These mechanisms included the overhead structure with chains and an infra-red warning and detection system.
“The latest approach was for improved signage approaching the bridges. The reality of all these systems was that none of them actually deterred the trucks from entering the bridge,” a metro spokesman said.
“None of them actually proved to be more effective than the other over the longer term. The system currently implemented is, however, more conventional and compliant to the regulations and relevant manuals. This system should, in the metro’s view, be maintained.”
They also suggested the media assist in increasing the awareness of this height limitation in the road system.
EXPRESS has referred the matter to the metro again.
