New Yorkers are suffering through nightmare traffic as several lanes on one of the main bridges out Manhattan were closed Friday after a truck fire.
A 40-foot tractor trailer on the Ed Koch Queensboro Bridge’s lower level burst into flames just after 11am, sending flames and thick black smoke billowing into the sky. The fire was put out within an hour, but the resulting damage is going to send drivers’ tempers flaring until at least Sunday.
Traffic jams stretched for miles, gridlocking both Midtown and the Upper East Side with two and three hour delays during the height of evening rush hour.
The truck driver and a passenger fled their vehicle when they saw smoke coming from the engine, escaping just before two reserve fuel tanks with 80 gallons of diesel exploded, according to WPIX. The flames burned so hot they may have shifted a support beam for the upper roadway, causing authorities to shut down multiple lanes of traffic until further notice.
The truck was filled with plastic and wire hangers, which could be seen strewn all over the lanes of traffic closed after the blaze was tamed
Drivers complained to local media of hour-long trips across the bridge – it normally takes only a few minutes. They also complained about the traffic leading to the span.
‘It took me an hour and a half to get here all the way from Canal Street,’ an angry driver snarled in standstill traffic told NBC New York. ‘This is ridiculous. This is crazy.’
With many drivers looking to escape the city for the serenity of their homes or a weekend in the Hamptons, the traffic tie up could not have come at a worse time.
Delays at the Queens-Midtown Tunnel, the RFK Triborough Bridge and other East River crossings were also well over an hour long at the height of rush hour, giving frustrated drivers no where to turn.
With idling cars stretching over 40 blocks north and south, navigating Manhattan was an exercise in futility.
‘It’s been about 20 minutes a block, just sitting still,’ another driver said to NBC New York, adding that ‘it’s going to be a long ride.’
Officials expect to complete an inspection and repairs to the bridge and have it fully opened by Sunday morning, according to a statement.
The charred truck was towed to the Queens side of the bridge, according to CBS New York.There were no injuries reported and the only vehicle harmed was the truck.
Despite the incessant honking horns and shouting voices that are the soundtrack of city traffic, one driver speaking to CBS New York put it all in perspective.
‘Frustrating, definitely, but it’s the city’ a driver told CBS New York.
Also known locally as the 59th Street Bridge, the East River’s longest span was built between 1901 and 1909, it carries over 180,000 cars a day and was designated a National Historical Landmark in 1972. Ed Koch, its official namesake, was mayor of New York from 1978 to 1989.