July 13, 2018 -- Bridge strikes were the topic at a meeting at County Executive George Latimer’s office. Latimer pulled together officials from Scarsdale, Mamaroneck, Rye Brook, Rye, along with the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT), state elected officials and the Trucking Association of New York to work together to find ways to stop bridge strikes on the Hutchison River Parkway and other parkways in Westchester County.
Latimer said: “This is a problem and it is going to stop. We are going to make every effort we can to try to end this. This is a solvable problem. If government can’t solve this problem then government can’t do anything. And, I confidently believe that rational people working together can make a difference.”
After the meeting, Latimer said there isn’t going to be one solution, but rather many. Among them:
NYSDOT agreed to do an immediate assessment of dramatic signage prior to the King Street Bridge on the Hutchison River Parkway.
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Trucking Association of New York will work with County Executive’s Office to establish an education program for users of all parkways that would explain the County’s Parkway System.
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Outreach to mapping companies, like Google Maps and Waze, to update their software to add in warnings for trucks and other commercial vehicles.
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Westchester County Police to gather a breakdown of the statistics on the bridge strikes and the NYSDOT to also share the data they have collected.
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Evaluate the location where the “head banger” system could be tested.
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Review of bridge strikes on the Bronx River Parkway.
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NYSDOT to alert local police in real time, along with County Police, of trucks entering parkway.
Latimer said: “I am confident we can execute these strategies relatively quickly, and we will monitor the success we have.”
The next meeting is set for the fall.