# The Undefeated Bridge (funny) **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [October 26, 2012, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-undefeated-bridge-funny/638888 "2012-10-26T00:24:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Ken001](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/43a26b/32.png) [@Ken001](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ken001)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2012, 8:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-undefeated-bridge-funny/638888/21 "2012-10-26T08:55:20Z")
Very cool, put a smile on my dial. Thanks. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2012, 11:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-undefeated-bridge-funny/638888/22 "2012-10-26T11:20:01Z")
> [@TimeWinder](#): > > Nope, after that bridge, the semi is at most 11’ 8". It is now a demi semi. ---
**Author:** ![Cinnamon\_Imp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58956e/32.png) [@Cinnamon\_Imp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cinnamon_Imp)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2012, 11:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-undefeated-bridge-funny/638888/23 "2012-10-26T11:36:53Z")
> [@Manduck](#): > > I guess I’m the only one wondering why they didn’t build the bridge a little higher or the road a little lower? Probably. The bridge was built 100 years ago according to the link, so it presumably seemed high enough for the vehicles of the time. Just the same as the rail bridge crossing over [West Street](http://www.heraldscotland.com/sport/spl/aberdeen/bus-crash-toll-rises-to-five-as-girl-dies-1.483202) and [Cook Street](http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-11036547) in Glasgow, which has claimed assorted vehicles and lives over the years. ---
**Author:** ![Xema](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/9de053/32.png) [@Xema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xema)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2012, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-undefeated-bridge-funny/638888/24 "2012-10-26T13:11:31Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > It is now a demi semi. Did it quaver? (Given the appropriate engine, it could be a hemi demi semi.) ---
**Author:** ![Finagle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b19c9b/32.png) [@Finagle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Finagle)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2012, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-undefeated-bridge-funny/638888/25 "2012-10-26T13:59:02Z")
OK, after the fifth or sixth accident, why didn’t they hang a bang bar at 11’ 7" a couple of hundred feet from the bridge? You know, something that will make a helluva lot of noise but not actually rip the top off a truck? ---
**Author:** ![Cinnamon\_Imp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58956e/32.png) [@Cinnamon\_Imp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cinnamon_Imp)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2012, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-undefeated-bridge-funny/638888/26 "2012-10-26T13:59:35Z")
Wouldn’t get as many hits for the video on YouTube. ---
**Author:** ![dimmy\_derko](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/43a26b/32.png) [@dimmy\_derko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dimmy_derko)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2012, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-undefeated-bridge-funny/638888/27 "2012-10-26T14:07:03Z")
You wouldn’t think it just by sight alone, but that is one badass bridge. We need Mythbusters to test if it really can withstand anything up to a low-yield nuke. ---
**Author:** ![Indian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c0e974/32.png) [@Indian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Indian)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2012, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-undefeated-bridge-funny/638888/28 "2012-10-26T14:10:34Z")
> [@Mahaloth](#): > > [This bridge is 11’ 8’’ and remains…undefeated!](http://www.prochan.com/view?p=da1_1351183858) > > I could watch this video over and over. It brings joy to my heart. I did not enjoy it. Somehow it struck me as a avoidable. It truckers are still doing it after seeing multiple warnings well before that bridge, so be it. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2012, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-undefeated-bridge-funny/638888/29 "2012-10-26T14:18:19Z")
> [@Finagle](#): > > OK, after the fifth or sixth accident, why didn’t they hang a bang bar at 11’ 7" a couple of hundred feet from the bridge? You know, something that will make a helluva lot of noise but not actually rip the top off a truck? The have a sign that lights up and flashes as you approach the bridge if your vehicle is over 11’ 8". The drivers seem able to ignore that. ---
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2012, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-undefeated-bridge-funny/638888/30 "2012-10-26T14:42:18Z")
Considering it’s a railroad trestle, it ought to be designed to outright destroy trucks passing under it before suffering any damage, since a train derailment would be much more destructive. [Case in point](http://www.exponent.com/kentucky_train_derailment/). ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2012, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-undefeated-bridge-funny/638888/31 "2012-10-26T15:12:33Z")
Years ago I worked in a parking garage. Someone ignored the clearance sign and crashed into it - also taking down the sign. It took a few weeks to get it replaced - some damage to where it hung. So of course, someone else soon came and whacked the top of their truck into it. He was livid and demanded to know why there was no sign indicating the clearance. My boss asked him how high his cab was. He (clearly) didn’t know, and just turned and walked away. ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2012, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-undefeated-bridge-funny/638888/32 "2012-10-26T15:33:57Z")
> [@dimmy\_derko](#): > > You wouldn’t think it just by sight alone, but that is one badass bridge. We need Mythbusters to test if it really can withstand anything up to a low-yield nuke. Actually, according to [http://www.11foot8.com/](http://www.11foot8.com/), there is a sacrificial crash beam on each side of the bridge that bears the impact, protecting the main load-bearing beams. In the video you can even see one of these beams, bent, laying in the grass next to the bridge. Replacing those every now and then (when it gets bent excessively by a really well-made box truck) is apparently cheaper than building a taller, wider bridge. ---
**Author:** ![Machine\_Elf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Machine\_Elf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machine_Elf)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2012, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-undefeated-bridge-funny/638888/33 "2012-10-26T15:37:59Z")
[FAQ here about the bridge.](http://www.11foot8.com/faq.html) Very informative. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2012, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-undefeated-bridge-funny/638888/34 "2012-10-26T16:40:43Z")
> [@](#): > > The signeage is pretty good. Large signs alert driver to the low clearance several blocks before the bridge. Overheight vehicles trip a light switch that turns on flashing warning lights.right at the bridge. From the web site FAQ. Sounds like the signage is reasonable. ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2012, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-undefeated-bridge-funny/638888/35 "2012-10-26T16:43:59Z")
> [@levdrakon](#): > > I like the hay truck driver who sees what happens to the hay truck in front of him and decides to just go through anyway. Ha ha, right? I was thinking, “Well the hay truck got off easy.” Then the second one went and I was like, “Well why did that guy go through?” ---
**Author:** ![FlyByNight512](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/82dd89/32.png) [@FlyByNight512](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlyByNight512)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2012, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-undefeated-bridge-funny/638888/36 "2012-10-26T16:55:34Z")
> [@Machine\_Elf](#): > > [FAQ here about the bridge.](http://www.11foot8.com/faq.html) Very informative. Yes indeed. It explains why they can’t raise the bridge (too expensive), lower the road (sewer line, also 100 years old, too expensive to move), or hang a bumper bar (delivery trucks have to be able to get to the intersection and turn, there’s nowhere to hang one). And they have an epic amount of signage, including an ‘overheight when flashing’ sign right on the bridge itself that measures approaching vehicles. Some idiot still ignores it about once a month (like people said, mostly rentals), but many more see it and back up. Freaking hilarious. ---
**Author:** ![Algher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Algher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Algher)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2012, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-undefeated-bridge-funny/638888/37 "2012-10-26T17:04:34Z")
There is one of those bridges in the San Francisco area (somewhere down near Menlo Park / Palo Alto / Mountain View I think) - when you rent a UHaul they give you a map showing exactly where it is, and have photos of the trucks taken out by it. ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2012, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-undefeated-bridge-funny/638888/38 "2012-10-26T17:11:31Z")
A city councilman probably also owns “Bob’s Truck Roof Repair Shop” a quarter mile down the road. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2012, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-undefeated-bridge-funny/638888/39 "2012-10-26T17:23:29Z")
That was hilarious. My favorite was the rental truck that hit it, backed up and drove off with an accordian top. An enterprising fella would set up an air compressor, let the air out of truck tires and refill them once they passed under. The beauty of it: Even if without air it wouldn’t fit under, they _still_ would need their tires refilled. ---
**Author:** ![mischievous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c2a13f/32.png) [@mischievous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mischievous)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2012, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-undefeated-bridge-funny/638888/40 "2012-10-26T17:32:12Z")
The FDR drive runs up the east side of Manhattan, which, as you all know, gets lots of traffic. It has several very low clearances and is completely closed to truck traffic. Needless to say, in my many years of driving in NYC, I saw a number of epic truck/bridge incidents, all of which were with professional drivers who should have known better. Some were sad and fatal (tour bus rammed a bridge hard), most were just annoying. My favorite: I’m driving north during morning rush hour, when the entire observable universe is trying to head south. Oddly, the south-bound traffic is very light, and eventually peters out entirely. Clearly the southbound road is closed somewhere up ahead. Up ahead, I see three SUVs crashed on either side of the road. A little further, many more wiped-out SUVs and a couple of crashed cars. Just past that, I start seeing those little round watermelons all over the road. And finally, at the far edge of the overpass, an entire semi full of watermelons with its top ripped off, watermelons everywhere, and the city’s streetcleaning vehicles starting in on the mess. Apparently, the truck hit the overpass, spewed watermelons everywhere, and people kept trying to get through. The SUVs, with their higher mass, did not do so well when they hit slick watermelon pulp, although most car got through okay. Eventually, they just closed the road. It was the most ludicrous scene I had seen in a while and I spent the rest of the day giggling. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-undefeated-bridge-funny/638888.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-undefeated-bridge-funny/638888.md?page=3)