# Tour Bus hits overpass bridge at Miami Airport. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [December 1, 2012, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tour-bus-hits-overpass-bridge-at-miami-airport/642695 "2012-12-01T17:40:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2012, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tour-bus-hits-overpass-bridge-at-miami-airport/642695/1 "2012-12-01T17:40:50Z")
[link.](http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-57556605/bus-hits-miami-airport-overpass-2-dead/) I’ve often wondered why low bridges and overpasses are built in the US. It’s an accident just waiting to happen. 30 people hurt and 2 dead because some idiot designed the bridge a few inches too low. A lot of semi trucks can’t clear 8 ft 6 in. Whats the big deal in building a bridge at 9 ft? The article says there is a taller bridge at the airport for buses and trucks. Why not make all bridges safe for all traffic? People’s lives are at stake and they are depending on a traffic sign to avoid a tragedy? This happens far too often. I’ve seen other reports of trucks stuck under a low bridge. Usually no one dies. They let the air out of the tires and they can wench the truck out. This is just so dumb to build low bridges in the first place. > [@](#): > > A bus carrying more than 30 people hit a concrete overpass at Miami International Airport, killing two people on board and leaving three others critically injured, officials said Saturday. > > The large, white bus was too tall for the 8-foot-6-inch entrance to the arrivals area, said airport spokesman Greg Chin. Buses are supposed to go through the departures area, which has a higher ceiling, he said. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2012, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tour-bus-hits-overpass-bridge-at-miami-airport/642695/2 "2012-12-01T17:48:12Z")
> [@](#): > > Two large signs warn drivers of large vehicles not to enter beneath the concrete overpass. One attached to the top of the concrete barrier reads: “High Vehicle STOP Turn Left.” The other, placed to the left of the driveway several feet in front of the barrier, says all vehicles higher than the 8-foot-6 threshold must turn left. Shades of the Midland, TX, train accident. Maybe the problem isn’t bridges too low, but buses too high. ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2012, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tour-bus-hits-overpass-bridge-at-miami-airport/642695/3 "2012-12-01T17:50:22Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > I’ve often wondered why low bridges and overpasses are built in the US. It’s an accident just waiting to happen. Because many bridges and overpasses predate tall vehicles, or even motor vehicles period? I’m not sure where the mystery here lies. > [@](#): > > Why not make all bridges safe for all traffic? People’s lives are at stake and they are depending on a traffic sign to avoid a tragedy? Like “One-Way, Do Not Enter” signs? Or the myriad other signs one encounters on the roadways? Again, I’m not sure where the mystery lies. Clearly this is egregious driver error. Tragic, but between the driver and the bridge, I’m blaming the driver. ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2012, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tour-bus-hits-overpass-bridge-at-miami-airport/642695/4 "2012-12-01T17:52:36Z")
Are there places where overhead clearance signs have hanging chains that will drag on the roof if your vehicle is too tall? ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2012, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tour-bus-hits-overpass-bridge-at-miami-airport/642695/5 "2012-12-01T17:55:29Z")
> [@For You](#): > > Are there places where overhead clearance signs have hanging chains that will drag on the roof if your vehicle is too tall? I’ve only seen those at such places as parking garages or car washes. Few people know how tall their personal vehicle is.(Mainly vans) ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2012, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tour-bus-hits-overpass-bridge-at-miami-airport/642695/6 "2012-12-01T18:02:29Z")
You don’t expect low bridges like that on a fairly new looking interstate. Usually low bridges are on state highways or on city streets. They are old and predate modern semi trucks. We have a few old bridges in Arkansas that occasionally get a semi stuck under them. They have that route marked “Not for trucks” but drivers miss the signs. Eventually the bridge will wear out and get replaced. Until then it’s a hazard. The driver is at fault. It just bugs me that an unnecessary road hazard was created in the first place. Especially at an airport which generates a lot of traffic. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2012, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tour-bus-hits-overpass-bridge-at-miami-airport/642695/7 "2012-12-01T18:32:16Z")
> [@For You](#): > > Are there places where overhead clearance signs have hanging chains that will drag on the roof if your vehicle is too tall? There are a few of those around Boston. There are several routes around here that don’t allow trucks. (I’m not entirely sure, but I think they may be under the legal jurisdiction of the parks commission; they’re mostly park-like areas or along the rivers.) The ones along the banks of the Charles have hanging signs in advance of the low bridges. I don’t know all the history, but they certainly could have been built at a time when vehicles were much shorter than they are now. In the article linked in the OP, you can see that the bus practically crashed into the sign warning the driver to turn. I see lights on it. Those may be triggered by a height sensor (breaking a light beam, or something similar) up the road a bit. I’ve seen that kind of setup, too. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2012, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tour-bus-hits-overpass-bridge-at-miami-airport/642695/8 "2012-12-01T18:35:12Z")
Google image “truck stuck under bridge” there’s lots of examples. [http://thegazette.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/4843983-LAS-Truck-stuck-under-bridge-08\_20\_2009-10.01.20.jpg](http://thegazette.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/4843983-LAS-Truck-stuck-under-bridge-08_20_2009-10.01.20.jpg) Sometimes the driver can make it if he has a full load. But it’s a big gamble. ---
**Author:** ![suranyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@suranyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/suranyi)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2012, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tour-bus-hits-overpass-bridge-at-miami-airport/642695/9 "2012-12-01T19:04:37Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > [link.](http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-57556605/bus-hits-miami-airport-overpass-2-dead/) > > I’ve often wondered why low bridges and overpasses are built in the US. It’s an accident just waiting to happen. 30 people hurt and 2 dead because some idiot designed the bridge a few inches too low. A lot of semi trucks can’t clear 8 ft 6 in. Whats the big deal in building a bridge at 9 ft? The article says there is a taller bridge at the airport for buses and trucks. > > Why not make all bridges safe for all traffic? People’s lives are at stake and they are depending on a traffic sign to avoid a tragedy? This happens far too often. I’ve seen other reports of trucks stuck under a low bridge. Usually no one dies. They let the air out of the tires and they can wench the truck out. This is just so dumb to build low bridges in the first place. The parkways in New York are prohibited to large trucks, and one way Robert Moses made sure that would be enforced was that he deliberately designed the overpasses so that trucks wouldn’t fit under them. ---
**Author:** ![Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapioca_Dextrin)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2012, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tour-bus-hits-overpass-bridge-at-miami-airport/642695/10 "2012-12-01T19:14:58Z")
Turn the speakers down, but [one bridge is really really low](http://11foot8.com/13-crashes-in-13-months/). ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2012, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tour-bus-hits-overpass-bridge-at-miami-airport/642695/11 "2012-12-01T19:22:44Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > In the article linked in the OP, you can see that the bus practically crashed into the sign warning the driver to turn. I see lights on it. Those may be triggered by a height sensor (breaking a light beam, or something similar) up the road a bit. I’ve seen that kind of setup, too. [Google View shows that the driver didn’t have much choice after getting so close.](https://maps.google.com/maps?q=Miami+International+Airport,+Miami,+FL&hl=en&ll=25.796328,-80.274687&spn=0.001322,0.001206&sll=37.6,-95.665&sspn=52.73783,79.013672&oq=miami+intern&t=h&hq=Miami+International+Airport,+Miami,+FL&z=20&layer=c&cbll=25.796308,-80.274799&panoid=7c1uEsTryIP7rMNd20mPMg&cbp=12,279.52,,0,0) ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2012, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tour-bus-hits-overpass-bridge-at-miami-airport/642695/12 "2012-12-01T20:12:35Z")
> [@Lute Skywatcher](#): > > [Google View shows that the driver didn’t have much choice after getting so close.](https://maps.google.com/maps?q=Miami+International+Airport,+Miami,+FL&hl=en&ll=25.796328,-80.274687&spn=0.001322,0.001206&sll=37.6,-95.665&sspn=52.73783,79.013672&oq=miami+intern&t=h&hq=Miami+International+Airport,+Miami,+FL&z=20&layer=c&cbll=25.796308,-80.274799&panoid=7c1uEsTryIP7rMNd20mPMg&cbp=12,279.52,,0,0) That does look like kind of a screwy setup. The bridge where the driver hit has signs warning vehicles over 8’6" to turn left (where it looks like they have to go through the parking garage), and the parking garage warns vehicles over 11’ to turn left. But in those links there are lots of signs warning tall vehicles. And if there’s no place to go, it’s still better to stop than to just drive into it. ---
**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2012, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tour-bus-hits-overpass-bridge-at-miami-airport/642695/13 "2012-12-01T21:11:24Z")
> [@suranyi](#): > > The parkways in New York are prohibited to large trucks, and one way Robert Moses made sure that would be enforced was that he deliberately designed the overpasses so that trucks wouldn’t fit under them. Actually, Robert Moses’s goal was to keep buses (of brown people) from using the parkways to reach his precious beaches and parks. Giiiiiant racist, Robert Moses. The rule is “No commercial vehicles” not, “no trucks.” ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2012, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tour-bus-hits-overpass-bridge-at-miami-airport/642695/14 "2012-12-01T21:34:03Z")
> [@runner pat](#): > > I’ve only seen those at such places as parking garages or car washes. Few people know how tall their personal vehicle is.(Mainly vans) They have them on the Hutchinson River Parkway in NYC. Trucks come off the Whitestone Bridge and have to be reminded to exit before the first of the Robert Moses style bridges (which look nice – stone arches). There have been a couple of cases of trucks getting onto the Hutch these days. I suspect its due to GPS; a truck driver will be told to take it without any notification of the clearance. ---
**Author:** ![Mdcastle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/958977/32.png) [@Mdcastle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mdcastle)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2012, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tour-bus-hits-overpass-bridge-at-miami-airport/642695/15 "2012-12-01T23:52:37Z")
Actually it looks more like a parking deck than a bridge. Building parking garages high enough for trucks and buses would be astronomically expensive. Up hear we had a guy Darwin himself when he ignored telltales and low clearance signs and drove his U-haul into the Mall of America parking gargage. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2012, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tour-bus-hits-overpass-bridge-at-miami-airport/642695/16 "2012-12-02T00:04:24Z")
I don’t know why the press is calling it an overpass. Overpass sounds like an Interstate bridge to me. Couple of better pics in this nbc article. > **[U.S. News: Latest Breaking Stories, Video, and Photos on American Politics,...](https://www.nbcnews.com/us-news?lite)** > > Get the latest news headlines and top stories from NBCNews.com. Find videos and news articles on the latest stories in the US. ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2012, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tour-bus-hits-overpass-bridge-at-miami-airport/642695/17 "2012-12-02T00:08:07Z")
news i saw said there were two signs and two turnoffs before the bridge. and there are brakes. ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2012, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tour-bus-hits-overpass-bridge-at-miami-airport/642695/18 "2012-12-02T00:41:57Z")
> [@runner pat](#): > > I’ve only seen those at such places as parking garages or car washes. Few people know how tall their personal vehicle is.(Mainly vans) There’s a height sign at our local parking garage but sometimes folks forget about their Thule thingies… ---
**Author:** ![Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a88e4f/32.png) [@Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Digital_is_the_new_Analog)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2012, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tour-bus-hits-overpass-bridge-at-miami-airport/642695/19 "2012-12-02T01:16:54Z")
I hate driving to Miami airport, for a variety of reasons. It’s probably been a decade since I’ve driven myself there, so it may have changed since then. But I remember it being rather confusing. And large. Also…while I was down in Miami today, I had \*\*\*nothing \*\*\*to do with this accident. And none of you can prove otherwise! -D/a ---
**Author:** ![ducati](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/cc9497/32.png) [@ducati](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ducati)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2012, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tour-bus-hits-overpass-bridge-at-miami-airport/642695/20 "2012-12-02T02:50:37Z")
Bus and truck drivers are professionals, theoretically with more training than the average driver, yet they still ignore or miss warning signs all the time. We had a tragic bus [crash](http://www.unos.org/)here in Atlanta a while back that killed 7 college kids. Why? because idiot professional driver drove up an exit ramp that ended at a “T” intersection at the top of the ramp, but kept on going. While the DOT noted that the signage was inadequate, I submit that tens of thousands of vehicles pass that exit daily, and none of them drive off the damn cliff. Slowing down and actually paying attention would cure most ills, IMHO. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tour-bus-hits-overpass-bridge-at-miami-airport/642695.md?page=2)