The Buckman Bridge

[David]

Are there any safety upgrades that could be made to the Buckman Bridge that would prevent yesterday's tragedy from happening again? There's been at least 2 people that have been tossed off the bridge in recent memory with the same outcome as yesterday.  A few more have gone over and lived.

Driving over it today, I noticed how low the shoulder barricades are.  I'm not a highway engineer, but it seems like some kind of heighten barrier or restraint mechanism could at least catch some of the cars that fly over due to auto-accidents.

[coredumped]

Jump to 1:34 no changes have been made, and there are no plans to make any

http://c.brightcove.com/services/viewer/federated_f9?&width=100%25&height=100%25&flashID=myExperience3679032504001&playerID=2503332981001&playerKey=AQ~~%2CAAACG-Z7hDk~%2CmkwlxmFZxJU1j5JweTbFlORrLvbtxm8s&%40videoPlayer=3679032504001&includeAPI=true&templateLoadHandler=cmg.brightcove.player7620511.onTemplateLoad&templateReadyHandler=brightcove%5B%22templateReadyHandlermyExperience3679032504001%22%5D&wmode=transparent&isVid=true&isUI=true&dynamicStreaming=true&linkBaseURL=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.actionnewsjax.com%2Fvideos%2Fnews%2Fbuckman-bridge-death-safety-questions%2FvCjYwh%2F&htmlFallback=true&autoStart=false&debuggerID=&originalTemplateReadyHandler=cmg.brightcove.player7620511.onTemplateReady&startTime=1405608036592

And from the article:
"I've not seen any concerns over the safety of the bridge," said FDOT spokesman Ron Tittle.
http://www.actionnewsjax.com/news/news/local/fdot-will-take-buckman-safety-concerns-bridge-desi/ngg65/#sthash.xVbm2gYW.dpuf

So it's cool everyone, the government says we're safe!

[Non-RedNeck Westsider]

Other than lowering the speed limit to 55, I don't see it happening, and that may not even prevent it. 

You have to think that due to the sheer width of the span, it leaves a lot of room for a vehicle to travel almost perpendicular to the walls at a high rate of speed.  Think Nascar...  the cars are zipping around Daytona at nearly 200mph, and there's still been incident of the cars getting over the barricades which are nearly 30 ft high. 

Physics wins.

And I'm pretty sure a poster here had it on his FB page, that there's a certain 'stigma' that there have been a lot of cars over the railing on the Buckman, but the actual number is 4, I think. 

[tufsu1]

It is really interesting to me that the blame goes on the "short" walls....instead of the fact that folks for a while kept buying bigger and taller vehicles.

That said, it would not be hard to add two railings on top of the wall.  That would extend the 32" height about another foot.

[David]

Most people are only doing 70-80 (hopefully) so it seems that an extra few feet may help catch a vehicle sent airborne. The cost alone of constructing that on the entire span is probably too high.  3+ miles of safety upgrades.

4 seems right. That's how many I remember. The poor soul yesterday, the one a while back that was caused by a ladder in the road and two others that have lived. The Fuller Warren has similar barricade height but we haven't heard about too many people going over that one since it's way shorter.

I'm just curious as to what safety options are out there for long bridge spans like the Buckman. I'm sure there's been a few similar accidents on the lake Pontchartrain causeway in Louisiana. 23 miles long. It just seems like there should be something in place, for incidents like this. 

[David]

It is really interesting to me that the blame goes on the "short" walls....instead of the fact that folks for a while kept buying bigger and taller vehicles.

That said, it would not be hard to add two railings on top of the wall.  That would extend the 32" height about another foot.

I was thinking that as well. In my older car I couldn't see over the barricade. In my newer compact SUV I could see right over it. I'd probably be in the river if I was hit.

[KenFSU]

Combined average daily traffic on the Buckman Bridge is 121,500 vehicles (as of 2010).

So, in the last four years, approximately 177 million vehicles have crossed the Buckman.

Two have gone over the side.

A heartbreaking tragedy, but I like those odds, and see this as more of a perception issue than a reality.

[Non-RedNeck Westsider]

Most people are only doing 70-80 (hopefully) so it seems that an extra few feet may help catch a vehicle sent airborne. The cost alone of constructing that on the entire span is probably too high.  3+ miles of safety upgrades.

4 seems right. That's how many I remember. The poor soul yesterday, the one a while back that was caused by a ladder in the road and two others that have lived. The Fuller Warren has similar barricade height but we haven't heard about too many people going over that one since it's way shorter.

I'm just curious as to what safety options are out there for long bridge spans like the Buckman. I'm sure there's been a few similar accidents on the lake Pontchartrain causeway in Louisiana. 23 miles long. It just seems like there should be something in place, for incidents like this.

I'm no expert, but I've had my fair share of crashes.  It's not so much how fast that the cars are traveling with the bridge, but the speeds that they're able to maintain while traveling perpendicular to the bridge.  My guess is that the bridge is about 150ft wide?  That's a lot of room to get sideways and maintain speed.

I would also guess that the average speed on the FWB is probably 15-20mph lower than that of the Buckman due to the general traffic patterns, exits, on-ramps, approaches and such.

[Lunican]

People should stop speeding and tailgating. They drive so frequently that they have become desensitized to the danger.

Tailgating creates a lot of potential problems that otherwise wouldn't exist.

[David]

The odds are pretty good. And I feel bad for what happened yesterday, I do. But this triggered off a few thoughts on what safety options are out there. Where barricade technology is at.

So far, what we have now seems to be current. Just seems antiquated to me. It's 2014. Where are the electro-repulse magnetic beam guardrails at??  The Buckman needs a force field!

(Or what else is available realistically)

[David]

They are doing a safety study on the Lake Pontchartrain bridge.

http://www.theneworleansadvocate.com/home/9513794-172/causeway-officials-to-test-new

Two of the models to be tested involve a double railing that would add 21 inches to the barrier height. The third is a single rail that would increase the height by 12 inches. The designs also will be tested at an airfield used by the Transportation Institute in Texas, where actual vehicles will be crashed into them to determine their performance. If all goes as expected, the engineers will recommend one of the designs to the Causeway Commission.

Since 1995, 11 vehicles have gone off the Causeway and into Lake Pontchartrain. The rate seems to be increasing: There have been four in the last two years, including two fatalities. All of the accidents have happened on the southbound span, where the barriers are 6 inches lower than on the northbound side.

50 million to upgrade the railing + pull over lanes , then again Lake Pontchartrain is a much longer bridge.

[Non-RedNeck Westsider]

People should stop speeding and tailgating if they're going be distracted by anything other than driving. They drive so frequently while texting, surfing the web, checking FB updates  that they have become desensitized to the danger that'a preventable when you're able to see potential dangers happening and have time to react while it's still hundreds of yards away instead of not seeing it until it's too late because your focus was in your lap.

Tailgating Not paying attention to the road ahead of you creates a lot of potential problems that otherwise wouldn't exist.

Now that I'm off of my soapbox, I can say that I've taken several courses that have taught me how to drive offensively rather than defensively.  I've raced both cars and motorcycles.  You learn to anticipate rather than react, and anyone that's ridden with me can attest that it's eerie how I seem to 'see' things happen before they do.

Case in point, I was riding down Blanding on my motorcycle with my son.  2 cars came out of a sideroad across the other lane, and somehow I KNEW the one in the back was going to come right into my lane.  I noticed that he never turned his head to the right, he was just mimicking the car ahead and swung out into the next lane over.  I checked ahead, had time to ride up onto the empty sidewalk to avoid the collision and stopped before the next driveway.  Not a scratch on anyone.

I'm not saying this because I'm a great driver, because they're plenty of people paying attention, but little things like that are the difference between you reading this on MJ or you reading about, "Man & Son taken to Hospital in Near-Fatal Motorcycle Accident" in the TU. 

Pay attention to everything around you;  make sure you have an out.  I really believe that people should be required to take more than just a basic driving test to get a license.  It's like I tell newbie bikers, anyone can roll their wrist and go 180 in a straight line.  Come talk to me after you've learned how to slow down from 180, while making that corner, and avoiding the slow car in the right lane.

[duvaldude08]

I am terrified of the Buckman. Now that I stay deep on the WS I use it more often than I did in the past. Each time I need to use it Im praying the entire time Im crossing it! I also fear getting side swiped and my trucking flipping over into the water, because it can happen as we see. I thought it would be common sense to make the barriers higher. You build a bridge ON the water, and have little or nothing to protect people? Thats just crazy to me

[Debbie Thompson]

It's a beautiful bridge, but people drive crazy on it!  And what's the deal with ladders falling off into the roadway constantly? I try to avoid.

[fsujax]

Who remembers when it was only two lanes in each direction and how scary it was driving over it?