oh heck!
 

yep,there`s heck to pay for my friend.He got caught in East Virginia this morning going over a low weight bridge and got a ticket for $34,327.00.

I am glad it wasn`t me but thats a lot of money and might put him out of business.Of course he is responsible for his mistakes but 34 000?

does anyone here know any truck laywers in that Franklin,Va area?

Good lord, they charge him for a $1 per pound over the limit? We had 1 up here in Fredericksburg 2 years ago that was a heavy hauler who went over a bridge after getting off his prescribed route. He got annihilated by the ensuing fine for crossing the bridge, want to say it was a $40k + fine. Think they also got stuck with the emergency bridge inspection having to be paid for also. And no sorry, don't know any lawyers down in Franklin.

.60 cents a pound.They said he was 57,100 over
they said the fines was like this
civil penalty 25.00
processing fee 20.00
weighing fee 2.00
liquidated damages 34,260.00
additional liq damages 20.00
total 34,327.00
I hope he can make it thru this somehow but he should have known better.

I should have put in the original post he grossed 77,000 and the bridge was a 9 ton bridge

Holy smokes, he is darn lucky to have made it across. The shape many of our bridges are in here in Virginia............real lucky. The larger ones need replacing badly but VDOT keeps putting them off another year while forgetting the smaller ones until an incident like this happens. Now they will inspect it, probably declare it needs immediate replacement, shutdown the bridge and replace it and your friend may end up with more than just a ticket, he might be purchasing a new bridge........insurance should take care of that though. Definitely needs a lawyer, maybe check Petersburg, Chesapeake, Suffolk or Emporia for lawyers too. Town of Franklin lists a couple, Parker Crumpler looks like an accident lawyer that also does domestic cases, not sure on the others. The other locales to check show a handful on lawyers.findlaw.com under traffic violations and Franklin Virginia.

thanks,I`ll pass that on to him

ouchies! Better pay attention drivers or it may be you looking for a lawyer next time.

Yuuuuup, just 5 months ago another driver took down a historic bridge in Indiana. It was a 6 ton limit bridge, she was pushing about 78,000 or 39 tons and claimed to have been lost. To be fair, Google Street view showed it wasn't very well marked on her approach until she was at it. That said, the sign was easily readable that it was a 6 ton limit and No Trucks. So pay attention, if the sign says you can't do it, then don't do it. There is a reason a sign is there informing you. Don't be like old SteveBooth was it? Who used to frequent this site and would do his own thing. Like move traffic barriers that were blocking off roads.

"Don't be like old SteveBooth was it?" Wonder what ever happened to ole super trucker steve?
I think localities are using fines to help pay for normal routine maintenance and replacement of some of these bridges, not trying to make excuses for missing or ignoring signs. I followed directions in the N.E. and come up on a wooden covered wood decked bridge one time, luckily I got turned around in a framers drive/field. I called and asked for clarification and got someone in the warehouse and they talked me in they also printed up directions for the office staff to give out.
Hope your buddy gets a good lawyer and gets the fine lowered, he does deserve some fine and damages but 34K is reaching!

Who can forget the guy who got busted in PA south of Pittsburgh. They tossed him in jail for driving on a road, not a bridge, a road that had a weight limit on it! He couldn't pay the fine so they locked him up. It was something like 4 years ago I think, near Christmas time. He drove right past a sign at the bottom of the ramp that spelled it out at a stop sign. Is it a stupid deal, yeah IMO, but, not all roads are designed the same. Parking lots that say No Trucks, it's because it only has 2-4" of asphalt. Truck areas need more like 6-8" with proper subgrading. Roads are designed the same way. Private neighborhood might not meet DOT specs, trucks use it and the asphalt crumbles! Seen it on my road firsthand.

He's just lucky to still be alive to pay the fine. The state of some of these bridges is real bad.