Governor Kathy Hochul announced that new measures are being implemented this week in the Capital Region and Central New York intended to reduce collisions with low clearance railroad bridges.
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These new safety enhancements, put in place by New York State Department of Transportation, are being employed along the Onondaga Lake Parkway in the Village of Liverpool and the Town of Salina, Onondaga County, and along Glenridge Road in the Town of Glenville, Schenectady County.
Both roads travel under railroad bridges with posted clearances of 10 feet 9 inches and 10 feet 11 inches, respectively.
In Glenville, a multi pronged effort is being put in place by NYSDOT to reduce instances of trucks and other vehicles striking the Canadian Pacific Railway owned bridge that carries the rail line over Glenridge Road. A state of the art vehicle detection system, which uses infrared sensors, flashing beacons, floodlights, and cameras, will be fully operational by Thursday, August 31.
The Department of Transportation installed two sets of infrared detectors along with two electronic message boards and two new flashing beacons for vehicles heading westbound, which is the direction of travel in which the majority of bridge strikes have occurred.
There is one set of detectors and message boards for vehicles heading eastbound. Additionally, six new permanent cameras will work in conjunction with the over height detection system.
When an over height vehicle disrupts the continuity of the newly installed infrared beams, the system will trigger nearby beacons to flash floodlights to shine on the bridge, and electronic message boards will post a warning to the operator that their vehicle is too tall to fit underneath the bridge.
Also known as State Route 370, Onondaga Lake Parkway is located within Onondaga Lake Park and runs along the northern shore of Onondaga Lake, parallel to Old Liverpool Road, between the Interstate 81 interchange and the Village of Liverpool.
The CSX owned railroad bridge near the midpoint of the parkway has been subject to frequent collisions with over height vehicles.
The new enhancements being added augment the nearly 50 countermeasures currently in place along both sides of the bridge, which include signs, flashing beacons, pavement markings, variable message signs, and an electronic over height vehicle detection system. ■