Stuck Truck Ties Up Binghamton Rush Hour Traffic

Eight hours into the new month, an out-of-town trucker learned one of the railroad bridges on Front Street in Binghamton is a couple of inches lower than the other.

The upper section of the truck cab wound up wedged under the second bridge, just north of the Clinton Street intersection.

Damage to the cab appeared to be limited to the very top portion of the truck. There was no visible damage to the trailer.

City police directed southbound rush hour drivers heading into downtown Binghamton around the stuck truck.

Officers completed stopped Front Street traffic in both directions while the driver slowly backed up the rig and maneuvered it into the Broome County Health Department parking lot where he was able to turn around.

The damaged truck belonged to a Minneapolis-based company.

City officials have met with representatives of the Norfolk Southern Railway to discuss the low bridge problem.

Although the issue has been reviewed for years, no solution is in sight. A plan to lower the Front Street road surface under the bridges was pursued but funding for that project was pulled by regional transportation planners.

Transportation officials have said they believe there are enough warning signs along Front Street between the Route 17 exit ramp and the bridge to alert truckers to the low clearance.

Some officials have suggested GPS devices directing out-of-town drivers to Front Street may be contributing to the ongoing stuck truck problem.