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Guess He Really Didn't Want to Take the GWB
By
Jen Chung
Published Jun 1, 2007
Modified Mar 7, 2008
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By
Jen Chung
Published Jun 1, 2007
Modified Mar 7, 2008
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We've seen Port Authority workers measure the heights of trucks to make sure they will fit in either the Holland or Lincoln Tunnel. But yesterday one driver refused to stop and proceeded to drive his 13' 6" truck through the Lincoln Tunnel's 13' high center tube. And what does a truck look like after doing that? Well, check out the photograph from the NY Times, which describes its roof as being peeled back "as if it were a tin can." We'd like to add "A tin can whose sides are also falling down."
Truck driver Gilberto Cantu, whose driving four-year driving record has been "spotless," entered the Lincoln Tunnel early yesterday morning from the Weehawken, NJ side. Port Authority officials aren't sure why Cantu didn't stop when warned by "flashing signs and a loudspeaker," as he ripped off some of the inner tube's ceiling tiles (at least they are only decorative) during his 1.5 mile drive . No one was injured, and Cantu was issued a number of violations, "including reckless driving, failure to obey a traffic signal and failure to obey an officer’s command."
U.S.A. Logistics' safety director told the Times, "This is going to cost us, and it’s going to cost him," with the possibility of him losing his job. And the Port Authority says that rarely do drivers of too-tall vehicles enter the tunnel and when they do, they usually stop and are backed out.
And the Holland Tunnel's height is only 12'6".
Tagged
holland tunnel
lincoln tunnel
News: NYC
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ny times
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Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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