Another truck hits Augusta’s infamous Olive Road bridge

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) - The infamously low Olive Road bridge has been struck again.

This time, it happened around 11:49 a.m. Friday.

Photos showed a U-Haul box truck wedged under the bridge.

That’s the typical-size truck that usually hits.

It’s actually happened countless times before, including just before Christmas.

After that happened, we asked John Ussery, Augusta’s assistant director of traffic engineering, whether there’s a way to keep this from happening.

There’s a beam is set in front of the span on top to protect the bridge structure on both sides.

It’s painted red to get drivers’ attention.

State law requires at least two levels of warning before vehicles reach the bridge.

WATCH: WHY IS OLIVE ROAD BRIDGE A CRASH MAGNET?

The beam is partnered with more than 25 warning devices on Olive Road.

“There’s not a whole lot more we can do to warn the public there’s a low-hanging bridge,” Ussery said.

What about the other options?

Raising the bridge would cost millions of dollars.

“It’s the railroad’s bridge, so it would be their responsibility to do that,” Ussery said, “and we’ve talked to them in the past, and they would have to realign tracks for miles in every direction, which is a very expensive thing to do.”

Closing the road that goes under the bridge would mean emergency vehicles having a slower response time, plus more construction to nearby intersections.

And lowering the road would bring problems, too: There’s a creek right behind the bridge, so the road would always be flooded.

“It’s a very difficult area to try and fix,” Ussery said. “Even if you think you may make it, just take the time to go around and be safe and keep everyone else safe.”

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