I can understand the concern where the bridge is directly on a side road - where there might not be enough room to give warning to someone who has turned onto the road. But …
“Tell-tales are also used to warn trucks and other tall vehicles of low-clearance bridges on roads and highways. In this context, chains are used instead of ropes, and it is frequently the sound of the chains knocking against the truck that alerts the driver of trouble.”
They basically did this as well. The vehicles are actually hitting the ‘crash bar’ not the bridge. Thus, the bridge itself remains protected.
And providing the rest of us with countless hours of amusement!
I remember a story about a truck that got stuck in a tunnel that it was supposed to be able to get through. Turned out the road had been paved since the clearance numbers had been published. Naturally, it was an 8y/o child who got the truck out of the tunnel, by telling them to deflate the tires.
And the crash bar peels tops and pops off RV air conditioners just fine, hence the nickname “Canopener.” The owner of the site has a second floor office or apartment in the building across the street which is where one of the YouTube camera is located. Sometimes he manages to collect the smaller dynamically altered bits to sell on the website.
In a reversal there’s a story about a four-year old locked in a car with the keys. The owner and passersby are contemplating which window to smash when a gaffer steps up, leans over, and silently mouths words through the glass. The kid rolls the window down. “What?”
“I said, roll the window down, darling.”
In that article’s video, the second half of the video shows a truck catching on fire. I’m really curious what was in that truck which combusted. That was a huge fire!
(It also seemed like the driver sure took his time getting out of the cab.)
Likely dazed or even in shock.
Good point. Also, I noticed that he didn’t get out of the vehicle until the cops arrived. I wonder if they instructed him to get out, for his own safety.
Then again, at one point two cops had to escort him away to safety. That was after a while had passed. I’d think that if he was a dazed or in shock, it would have either worn off by then or he’d have been off somewhere sitting. Possibly he’s just not too bright.
I googled the police statement and found this: the initial fire was in an AC compressor. I think that’s in reference to the truck’s refrigeration unit, which can be quite flammable.
Thank you for the info. 
That makes sense. I had assumed it was the contents of the back, but that is a very sensible explanation, especially since it would definitely have impacted the overpass in the collision.
He was probably just trying to get that last boilermaker properly metabolized first.
Very good theory. 
Something like this story
There was also the I-5 Skagit River bridge incident, which was rather high profile as that is kind of a busy road. The bridge superstructure arches across the roadway – not a lot, only 2 or 3 feet, but the difference was enough that the load would have cleared with room to spare had the truck been in the left lane.
And, of course, this famous incident…
Right in the middle of the whole damn show
Was a real nice tunnel
Now wouldn’t you know
Sign says clearance to the 12-foot line
But the chickens was stacked to 13-nine
Well we shot that tunnel at a hundred-and-ten
Like gas through a funnel and eggs through a hen
We took that top row of chickens off
Slicker than scum off a Louisiana swamp
Woke up the chickens
One of the problems is that the bridge is very close to a 4-way intersection. The other, I think, is that one of the roads is one-way (but I’m not certain of this). And, of course, you get people who are so busy trying to beat the traffic light that they completely ignore the signs and signals.
Near my apartment is one of those crash bars. Last year, a truck driver hit the thing. The top of the bar somehow ended up going through the back window of the cab, narrowly missing the driver’s head. The guy could’ve been killed. I get that it’s stupid to ignore all the nifty warnings, but not amusing–those things can be dangerous. Heck, it could’ve hit a pedestrian and taken them out, too.
Did you see the fire truck that responded? Earlier in the video a fire truck tried to go under the same bridge and crashed. How would a fire truck, that has probably responded to this bridge multiple times, pull that fucking boner move itself?
Interesting! I remember reading about that solution from one of the Encyclopedia Brown books back when I was in fourth grade. I wonder if that’s where this 8-year-old got the answer from, too!