Campaign underway in Kentucky to highlight importance of low clearance safety, named 'Confirm Your Height, Be In The Know'
In Kentucky, a public awareness campaign titled "Check Your Height, Know It's Right" is underway from July 22 to July 26, aimed at ensuring the safety of commercial vehicle operators, rental van drivers, RV owners, and car/pickup drivers. The campaign, supported by The Eastern Transportation Coalition, is focused on educating drivers about safely passing low clearance bridges to prevent vehicle and infrastructure damage.
The campaign emphasizes the importance of complying with posted low-clearance signs and not relying solely on GPS or navigation devices, as these tools do not flag potential low bridge clearance issues for non-passenger vehicles such as overheight commercial vehicles, leased/rental/delivery box trucks, and vehicles hauling equipment or livestock trailers.
Key safety steps for drivers include measuring the vehicle height before traveling, checking door decals or the owner's manual, including the height of any trailers, equipment, or livestock loads, ensuring dump truck beds are lowered and that tall equipment is stowed properly before entering highways, and always watching for and obeying posted low clearance signs near bridges and overpasses.
Ignoring posted height warnings or relying exclusively on GPS devices poses several potential risks. Bridge strikes can cause serious damage to vehicles and infrastructure, lead to traffic delays, create safety hazards for the public, vehicle operators, and emergency personnel, incur economic costs for repair and potential fines or liability issues, and cause operational disruptions due to immobilized vehicles or delayed deliveries/travel plans.
Kentucky has approximately 180 bridges with vertical clearances lower than the 14-foot federal standard. The campaign's focus on safety extends to ensuring that all types of vehicles, including dump trucks, are following proper procedures.
By knowing your vehicle's height and obeying posted signs, drivers can help prevent preventable bridge strikes and ensure safety on the road. The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet is encouraging these safety measures to promote a safer driving environment in the state.
- The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet is urging drivers to take safety measures, such as measuring their vehicle's height before traveling, to avoid preventable bridge strikes, particularly on bridges with lower-than-standard clearances.
- The ongoing public awareness campaign in Kentucky highlights the importance of adhering to posted low-clearance signs and not solely relying on GPS devices, as these may not alert non-passenger vehicles, like overheight commercial vehicles, to potential low bridge clearance issues.
- As part of the "Check Your Height, Know It's Right" campaign, industry professionals and finance experts are emphasizing the economic costs associated with bridge strikes, including repair expenses, potential fines, liability issues, and operational disruptions due to immobilized vehicles or delayed deliveries/travel plans.
