On Thursday morning, a truck heading eastbound on the Massachusetts Turnpike hit the Auburn Street bridge in Auburndale. The truck’s pneumatic lift had suddenly released and became wedged in a steel beam on the overpass. According to former Ward 4 City Councilor Jay Harney, a longtime Auburndale resident who came upon the accident, the pneumatic lift was dislodged from the truck when it struck and dented the bridge, causing some debris on the roadway. Eastbound traffic was reduced to one lane and the Auburn Street bridge, which is state property, was closed to traffic. Police reported that the truck’s driver suffered minor injuries.
Although the bridge was open to traffic later in the day, crews were back on Friday continuing to assess damage to the heavily traveled structure. “You want to be sure about structural integrity,” Mr. Harney said, noting that the bridge is heavily trafficked in the morning and evening rush hours and that there is constant foot traffic into Auburndale Square. In addition, he expressed concern about the Framingham/Worcester commuter train that travels under the bridge parallel to the Mass Turnpike. “It’s hard to understand how the piece flew up to hit that bridge,” he said, echoing the question of many observers.
Mr. Harney, recalling the many times that he has held campaign signs on the overpass, noted the high volume of traffic on the turnpike and on the bridge and wants to make certain that there is a complete and thorough examination of the damage to the bridge to ensure the safety of both drivers and pedestrians on the Turnpike and the Auburn Street bridge.
As of Tuesday, January 3, the west side of the Auburn Street overpass remained closed to foot traffic. However, the stairs leading from the overpass to the Auburndale Commuter Rail station were open to passengers.