Houston Police on Lookout for Overweight Semi Trucks on Yale Street Bridge

October 22nd, 2012 |

HOUSTON, Texas — Infrastructure experts call overweight semi trucks crossing over the Yale Street Bridge in Houston an accident waiting to happen. Ever since the Texas Department of Transportation reduced the weight limit on the Yale Street Bridge, police are on now on the lookout for overweight trucks trying to cross the bridge near the heart of Houston.

The weight limit for the Yale Street Bridge in Houston, TX has recently been lowered raising concerns about semi trucks crossing the bridge and exceeding the load limit.

TXDOT has reduced the weight limit near the Heights to 6000 lbs. Brad Woodward from KHOU reported that for the second time in twelve months the load limit on the Yale Street Bridge and the Heights has been lowered prompting some community activists to call for it to be shut down all together.

Map showing location of the Yale Street bridge, just south of the Interstate 10 Freeway in Houston, TX that is the focus of a new, lower weight limit.

Woodward went on to say, on Yale Street just south of I-10, a flurry of activity on every corner, and leading to it all is what is widely considered one of the worst bridges in Texas.

“This bridge now has the load limits of a lot of bad rural creek bridges in Texas. The difference: This is a major thoroughfare in Houston that connects I-10, 610 and down south. And the city has just permitted over 225 thousand square feet in retail,” said Jeff Jackson, the director of Responsible Urban Development for Houston.

“What we’re really concerned about is not your average passenger car that’s going over the bridge back and forth to work every day. We’re concerned about the delivery trucks and semi-trucks coming off I-10 and exiting and turning on Yale Street to come to all of the development,” said mayoral spokesperson Janice Evans.

TXDOT has just reduced the load limit to 3,000-pounds per single axle with a maximum weight of 6,000 pounds—that’s less than what some trucks and SUVs weigh.

Mayoral spokesperson, Janice Evans-Davis said, ” What we’re really concerned about here is not you average passenger car going back and forth over the bridge to work evey day. We’re concerned about the delivery trucks and semi-trucks coming off I-10 and exiting and turning on Yale Street to head to all of the development.”

Activists are mainly concerned about the delvery trucks and semi trucks that are coming off of I-10, exiting and making a turn there on Yale Street

Houston police officers are already enforcing the new restrictions.

“This bridge is violated multiple times an hour. Now that the limits are even lower, it’s going to be violated multiple times every five minutes,” said Jackson.

RUDH wants it shut down entirely.

“We can’t shut it down because that would create a terrible traffic problem,” said Evans.

The city says it will be making low-cost repairs in coming weeks that could result in the load limit being increased again.

Construction on a replacement bridge isn’t even expected to begin until late 2016.

Source: KHOU News

Posted by Houston truck accident lawyer Gordon, Elias & Seely, LLP