| Home | About | Archives | RSS Feed |
Tractor-Trailers Stuck Under North Adams Trestle Twice in One Month
 A stuck truck closed off traffic on Church Street on Monday. |
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — A section of Church Street was blocked off for nearly three hours on Monday afternoon after yet another tractor-trailer got stuck under the railroad trestle.
A trailer hauling 25,000 pounds of machined metal, reportedly for a Disney ride, became wedged under the trestle at about 4:15 p.m. after leaving Morrison Berkshire on Church Street. The delivery was on its way to Minneapolis.
Traffic was blocked between Davenport Street and Ashland Street. The truck was pulled out from under the trestle shortly before 7 but it was going to take some time to stabilize it before Joseph Dean of Dean's Quality Auto & Truck Repair could remove it from the scene.
The top of the trailer was peeled back nearly halfway and Dean said it had broken in half. Air was let out of the tires and the cargo removed by Morrison Berkshire before an attempt was made to pull it out.
Pan Am Railways also had a representative at the scene and all train traffic was halted until the trestle could be inspected.
The trestle dates back at least a century and its clearance is posted at 12-foot-6 on the south end and 12-foot on the north. Signs warn drivers of the approach but several trucks seem to get stuck under it every year, and occasionally under the Ashland Street trestle. One of the most recent incidents occurred on July 30.
A neighbor said he frequently sees trucks trying to back up on the south side. Drivers don't seem to realize they are not going to fit under until too late — or that the slope on the north side of the bridge may be a factor.
The semi left the scene shortly after 7 p.m. and was slowly escorted to Dean's on Curran Highway.
