DELAWARE, Ohio — The ‘Can Opener’ bridge on West Central Avenue in Delaware claimed or nearly claimed the tops of multiple trucks last week.
The CSX railroad bridge along West Central Avenue (State Route 37) is known to those in Delaware as the ‘Can Opener,’ due to its ability to catch truck drivers unaware of its height until it takes the top off their trailer. This, despite miles of signage and warning systems designed to alert drivers of the danger.
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The week of April 3, 2023, Delaware police crash reports show two crashes into the bridge happened.
The first crash happened around 10:47 a.m. on April 3. According to a crash report, a truck belonging to B & D Freight Inc. went completely under the bridge, causing damage to the top and sides of the truck. No damage to the bridge was reported.
On April 7, a truck owned by Fuerst Trucking LLC hit the bridge. This time, the trailer didn’t make it all the way underneath the bridge.
There were two additional near-misses with the bridge. On April 4, police were sent to the area of the bridge to assist the driver of a tall box truck backing out of the area. On April 5, the driver an eastbound semi needed help backing out.