Bristol Township Police are in the midst of a multijurisdictional targeted traffic enforcement effort focusing on trucks and pickup trucks weighing more than 3.5 tons driving over the Randall Avenue Bridge, eyeing community safety.
Authorities from the State Police and Public Utility Commission are assisting with the community safety focused effort aimed at protecting bridge integrity and keeping locals safe, Sergeant Jason Mancuso said.
Mancuso said enforcement efforts will continue around the clock Monday through Friday which is when motorist traffic is heaviest on the bridge.
Mancuso said targeted enforcement was launched shortly after the bridge reopened late last month.
Mancuso along with Pennsylvania State Police were staged on side roads to the bridge, monitoring truck traffic Thursday morning when Lower Bucks Source met to discuss the enforcement effort.
When Bristol Township reopened the bridge, a number of residents sent us pictures of really large and heavy trucks crossing over the bridge, Mancuso said.
Chief of Police C.J. Winik, after seeing the photos, said the township infrastructure needs to be protected from traffic weighing more than 3.5 tons crossing over the more than 100-year-old span.
Bridge weight warning signs are posted on all roads leading directly to the bridge, Mancuso said, adding that tonnage violations can be prohibitive.
“The number one job, Mancuso said, “is to keep people safe so the chief assigned this detail.”
A 3 1/2 ton bridge weight limit restricts vehicles to a maximum gross weight of 7000 pounds (3.5 tons). This limit is strictly for light-duty vehicles, typically allowing passenger cars, SUVs, and small pickup trucks, while prohibiting heavy-duty trucks, commercial vehicles, and loaded trailers, Mancuso explained.
Vehicle fines can be prohibitive and include bridge damage costs, according to Commonwealth safety standards.
Violating the Randall Ave Bridge vehicle weight guidelines, can result in a base fine ranging from $75 to over $100.00 for first time violators, according to PennDOT, plus $150.00 for every 500 pounds over the limit.
“This is a community safety issue,” Mancuso said. “We can’t have 8000 pound trucks crossing over that bridge.”
For additional information about the laws, regulations, and policies that allow Posting Authorities (such as PennDOT or municipalities) to post weight restrictions on roadways that are in danger of being damaged by overweight vehicles, please click here.
One of the Pennsylvania Certified scales to weigh trucks that are suspected of violating bridge weigh restrictions
Credit: Jeff Bohen, Lower Bucks Source
Recent Comments