Time for a truck ban on Broad Mountain

Route 93 on the Broad Mountain is more than a highway.

It's a launchpad for 80,000-pound missiles.

It's been a concern for decades. But now with three tractor-trailer crashes in three days, it's become obvious something needs to be done.

There's already a safety pull-off at the top, along with no fewer than 38 warning signs.

There's also an emergency runaway truck ramp midway down the mountain, used by out-of-control tractor-trailers.

But even that safety measure has limitations, as seen by Saturday's crash in which the ramp simply launched the missile, vaulting it into the woods.

The truck driver was injured, and no wonder. His truck had enough momentum to shoot up the nearly half-mile incline and continue about 50 yards before the rig cab wedged between two pine trees.

Emergency crews from Nesquehoning Hose Company, Hauto Fire Company, Nesquehoning Ambulance and Nesquehoning police worked in the rain to free the Minnesota driver trapped in the cab. A helicopter was called, but placed on standby. Charges are pending.

The photos from the crash scene are frightening, as are images taken at the two previous crashes.

In one of those, a carrier truck rolled over and tossed eight new Jeeps valued at $300,000.

It's not a stretch of the imagination to see potential for crash fatalities at the base of Broad Mountain. Particularly worrisome is the reality that Panther Valley School District buses are in that same area frequently.

The Route 93 mountain is a tragedy waiting to happen.

Police will be stepping up patrols at the top, and that's fine. But we can't expect cops to be there full-time. Plus, police have other duties to perform aside from baby-sitting truckers.

Nesquehoning police officer Derek Marouchoc said drivers didn't stop at the top of the hill at the designated truck pull-off.

Some say that's a part of the problem. The human error in this situation looms large.

Drivers unfamiliar with our mountains underestimate the potential for trouble. The Broad Mountain presents a daunting 9 percent grade well over 2 miles long before it ends at a T-intersection with Route 209.

Drivers just don't expect it, even though signs proclaim the danger.

Brakes are failing on the trucks because the mountain is just too long and steep for tractor-trailers. Yet it's not a mechanical issue, it's a human error issue.

And humans, so far, haven't found a way to rectify it.

But one law enforcement officer has come up with perhaps the best idea to protect the public and unsuspecting truckers.

Nesquehoning police Chief Sean Smith says he'd like to see all truck traffic banned from Route 93. It'd be a significant, drastic response, but maybe he's right.

The mountain is just too dangerous for tractor-trailer traffic. It's time for a strong preventive measure before responders are counting dead bodies instead of smashed Jeeps.

By Donald R. Serfass | dserfass@tnonline.com