No, 60 Minutes has not shown up at my front door. But this truck driver sure was having a bad day. It is not the greatest of pictures as it was taken through my car window but illustrates a common woe of truckers in my neighborhood. Abandon hope all ye large vehicles that enter here. Unfortunately for Mr. Sealy Mattresses, someone didn't read the little sign that said 11 FT-10 IN. Probably his truck is 11 FT-11 IN. OOPS. This happens all too often. I've actually seen a truck with its top peeled off kind of like the way you open a sardine can. I've also seen a truck sort of folded in a Vee shape down the middle. As the song says, "When will they ever learn?"
8 comments:
Please don't take this the wrong way, Sharala; but ask around.
This is a NOTORIOUS underpass in the City. If you look past the first posted sign, the SECOND posted height is significantly LOWER than the obvious State sign which you see on Ashland going Northbound!
I've seen more trucks wedged under this welter of HORSESHIT than anywhere else in the City.
Really, No offense, but this underpass is HORSESHIT!!!!!
Truckers SPRAYPAINT clearances on the first bridge beam under the the Metra/CNW track, and the CITY Sandblasts it off!!!
I'm not kidding. This is not the first truck trapped under this bridge and boned for a fine. It's Chicago. Get used to it. That underpass is a cash cow.
And don't get me started about the hideous, bone-tearing accidents into the unpadded steel girders under that structure just West of A. Finkl.
It's been a deathtrap since the '50s.
All regards and congratulations on your NANO score,
Joel.
Sorry. But you're wrong. That place is a trap. It's deliberate. Ask a knowledgeable Chicago cop. They'll tell you the same thing.
My failing. It's not Ashland. I think I know where it is. Didn't see it. But really? Most underpasses in the City are NOT realistic.
Ask a cop or trucker. They'll tell you the same thing.
Oh; this is a test of rookies: if they figure out to let air out of the truck tires, they're smart.
If not, they are not.
For real: most underpasses in the City are not accurate. Ask around.
Thanks much, and feel free to ignore or delete me.
Cheers,
Joel
PS: How's your office coming along?
This is at 56th and Lake Park. I'm not sure if it is correctly marked. But the Lakeshore Drive is supposed to be closed to trucks and I've seen trucks stuck under the viaducts there all the time.
I know Hyde Park is a death trap to truckers.
And I wouldn't put it past the city to scam people. Don't get me started on street cleaning!
You make me want to go over the that underpass with a tape measure.
Sorry if I hit a raw nerve.
My favorite is 'vehicle relocation': where Streets and San shows up to do some rear-end-scratching, decide they need to get to 'This particular spot on the sidewalk', and
TOWS YOUR CAR,
by ordinance, dumps it anywhere within two blocks... unless there are no spots available, in which case the City simply takes it. That's where my 1962 Ford Falcon went.
Ah, Chicago!
You can post this or not, but in my experiences with LSD and the police, it is unwritten (of course) that delivery and other 'working' trucks (No semis) are allowed ONE EXIT on LSD. This looks like a delivery driver looking for his one exit.
With my plated work truck, I could hop on and hop off, sometimes with a squad car directly behind me, and get my one exit with no ticket.
IDOT says 'no trucks', but misses the 'one exit' clause, which to my knowledge is not written down anywhere.
The boulevard issue is also fudged to a certain extent. If you're delivering a furnace on Augusta, how exactly are you supposed to not drive on it? The cops will let you slide briefly if you're working or moving, generally.
Most every driver I talked to agreed that the police, in recognition of the general impossibility of navigating some spots in large trucks, will let you slide for that one exit.
And a lot of the underpasses are mismarked.
Thanks Sarala -
I do miss exploring in Chicago. Gary, Indiana is also full of some amazing places to explore.
Interesting that you are a doctor - my favorite places to explore are old hospitals.
I like your writings and your photography - I'll be checking back often.
JL,
I'm being persnickety here but the guy was headed toward the lake so he wasn't looking for an exit to LSD.
I have had a car impounded once. It was my fault--I left it parked near the State of Illinois building for too long although the irony was I was a state employee on professional business visiting the child of a state employee in a state day care. I had a short term pass but overstayed my welcome. The $150 were not well spent.
I also had a car taken never to be seen again since it was an old car and I left it on the street for too long after I couldn't start it. It wasn't worth retrieving. I think this is all the unwritten tax code associated with living in Chicago.
Believe me I'm not defending the system.
The roads that run along the Charles River in Boston and Cambridge have numerous underpasses which are very low - the roads are designed for cars only. One method these are marked is with signs that read - "Cars Only" that hang from chains at the clearance height of the impending truck cruncher. These are always at a point when there is an option to head in another direction. On the way home from work many years ago I watched a truck ahead of me take out one of those signs. I'd think that the sound of the sign falling on the truck cab would have been a clue that something was wrong.
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