Those who live in Northeast Kansas City have known about ‘The Truck Stop’ for years.
"Decades this has been happening,” said Northeast Kansas City Chamber of Commerce member Bobbi Baker.
The 12-foot high railroad bridge that sits at Independence Avenue and Wilson has been stopping large trucks in its path for years. However, according to KCPD, there have been at least five crashes in the past year, three of those since August 1. All of the crashes caused by large trucks not meeting the clearance.
"You look back on the records, sometimes some of the accidents, they're not even marked down, recorded. There's numerous accidents there,” said local northeast resident Mark Morales.
The bridge is owned by Kansas City Terminal Railway. The company wouldn’t comment regarding whether or not it would ever consider raising the bridge or how much it would cost. But the company did tell 41 Action News it recently spent $50,000 on bridge repairs (using steel re-enforcement) and another $10,000 on additional L.E.D. warning signs.
The city already had signage posted on the bridge for several years, a legal requirement by the state of Missouri.
The city sent a statement to 41 Action News reading in part:
“It is the responsibility of truck drivers and trucking companies to be aware of height restrictions … The signs say it’s lower than it actually is – to try to provide an additional safety buffer.”
There is no state requirement on bridge height, according to the Missouri Department of Transportation.
Many locals feel the solution to ‘The Truck Stop’ is to make Independence Avenue a truck-free route.
"We would like to see Highway 24 be routed to another highway,” said Baker.
MoDOT said it strives for all modern bridges in the state to be at least 15 feet in height.
KCPD crash reports from all three August crashes describe 12-foot warning signs in working order.
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Josh Helmuth can be reached at josh.helmuth@kshb.com
