Port Authority vows to take “aggressive actions” against trucker, company responsible for GW Bridge traffic disruptions 

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey is planning to take “aggressive action” against the trucker and trucking company responsible for a spilled load of steel beams that caused massive disruptions on a crucial bridge Monday morning. 

The incident happened on April 4th at around 5:30 a.m. on the George Washington Bridge into Manhattan. 

Patch News reports that the flatbed truck was traveling across the bridge when some of the steel beams it was hauling came loose and fell onto the roadway. The falling beams damaged some brickwork under the overpass, scattering debris across all lanes of the roadway and forcing the closure of the lanes. 

Drivers on the upper level of the bridge sat in traffic for as long as three hours as a result of the incident, and drivers on the lower level also experienced several hours of delays. Drivers looking to get into Manhattan were urged to use the Lincoln or Holland tunnels, but those routes also experienced delays of up to 90 minutes due to an unexpected influx in traffic due to the accident. 

Now, the agency says that “the Port Authority is taking aggressive actions against the truck company and the driver that caused this morning’s massive disruption on the George Washington Bridge. All such incidents of gross negligence that violate safety standards and impact thousands of motorists will face the full consequences that the law provides for, including cost recovery of damages incurred.”

The George Washington Bridge is one of the busiest bridges in the world. Approximately 103 million vehicles cross the Hudson River using both levels of the bridge every year. It is not clear what citations have been issued to the driver and company as a result of the incident.