While PennDOT works to raise bridge clearances, it suggests 511PA app for alerts

When drivers try to squeeze trucks under bridges with inadequate vertical clearance, it can tie up traffic and cause damage to the vehicle and the overhead structure.

A too-tall vehicle on Interstate 70 struck and damaged the Route 51 overhead bridge in December 2021 in Rostraver. It led to traffic restrictions stretching over several months near that interchange until crews completed emergency repairs.

To curb such problems, PennDOT is moving gradually to increase clearances under lower-height state bridges when they are scheduled for replacement while also promoting driver awareness of remaining tight clearances through a new “Check Your Height, Know It’s Right” campaign.

While any bridge in Pennsylvania with a vertical clearance less than 14 feet, 6 inches is required to be posted with a low-clearance warning, PennDOT’s standard is a clearance of 16 feet, 6 inches under bridges over heavily traveled interstates.

On the stretch of I-70 crossing Westmoreland and Washington counties, “We’ve gone from 15 bridges to 11 bridges with substandard under-clearance over the last two years or so,” said Jeremy Hughes, assistant district engineer for design with PennDOT’s District 12 office in Uniontown.

The Route 51 span over I-70 is among bridges that have been removed from that list. It has been replaced with two side-by-side spans as part of PennDOT’s $120.6 million redesign and reconstruction of the interchange that is nearing completion.

Hughes said three more bridges over I-70 — all in Rostraver — have entered the construction phase, with planned clearance improvements: the Crawford Lane and Indian Hill Road bridges near the Arnold City exit and the pedestrian bridge in the Pricedale neighborhood.

Bridges crossing the interstate that are under design include the Route 201 bridge in Rostraver and one at the Lover exit (Exit 36) in Washington County.

“The remaining six bridges all have an under-clearance of at least 15 feet, 11 inches,” said Hughes. “They are almost never struck by over-height vehicles and have less of an effect on our ability to route (oversize) permit vehicles through the district. We’ll get around to those six eventually, but there are other projects ahead of them that do more good for more people.”

The damage to the Route 51 span over I-70 was one of 16 bridge strikes that occurred in the region covered by PennDOT District 12 (Westmoreland, Fayette, Washington and Greene counties) over the decade between 2013 and 2023, while vehicles got into similar scrapes with bridges 58 times in PennDOT District 11 (Allegheny, Beaver and Lawrence counties).

During the same period, more than 600 bridge strikes were recorded across Pennsylvania.

PennDOT’s “Check Your Height, Know It’s Right” campaign encourages commercial drivers and others with large vehicles to plan ahead for low clearances they’ll need to avoid in their travels.

“Drivers must know their vehicle height and watch for signage indicating bridge heights,” PennDOT Secretary Mike Carroll said. “If you are driving a commercial vehicle, a delivery or moving truck, or an RV, do not rely on your navigation app.”

A feature introduced in 2023 on the 511PA app can be selected to provide commercial drivers a voice alert about bridge heights over state roads on their route.

All motorists can use the “Low Bridge” map tool on the 511PA app, which uses a bridge icon to mark the location of each span that has a clearance lower than 13 feet, 6 inches. Clicking on each icon will provide more information.

Tom Treadwell, safety manager with J.A. Trucking in South Huntingdon, said the drivers who deliver general commodities with the company’s fleet of 40 trucks attend monthly safety meetings and regularly use the 511PA app. A state official visited to review the app, he said.

According to Treadwell, the J.A. drivers more often use other tools on the app to assist with navigation, rather than the low bridge alerts.

“For the most part, we use the Pennsylvania Turnpike,” he said. “Traffic is more of a concern there than the underpasses.”

In Pennsylvania, all vehicles and loads whose height comes within one foot of the benchmark clearance of 14 feet, 6 inches must apply for a special hauling permit. There are 142 bridges that fall below that clearance in PennDOT District 12 and 368 in District 11.

Beyond that, drivers of vehicles taller than 16 feet are required to complete a route survey to ensure adequate clearance, according to Jennifer Kuntch, deputy communications director for PennDOT. They must submit the survey results before PennDOT will consider issuing them an oversize vehicle permit, she said.

In addition to commercial drivers, PennDOT’s campaign looks to raise awareness of low bridges among those who rent moving vans — including families helping college students move into campus housing.

PennDOT points out a typical 26-foot moving or delivery truck can have a height ranging from 11 feet to 13 feet, 6 inches. U-Haul notes its moving trucks require up to 12 feet of vertical clearance.

Based on crash data over the past 11 years, Kuntch said, large trucks (including wreckers, cement mixers, auto haulers, box trucks and large commercial trucks) were involved in about 65% of reported bridge strikes. Pickups and other small trucks designed for personal or light use accounted for another 24% of the collisions with bridges.