NC Bans Trucks over 30' on US129 and Cherohala Skyway

It's about time!!!

 

Great news. How on earth can TN claim it is the motorists responsibility to avoid something that is in their lane. That is just a stupid comment.

Jim

 

Hmmmmmm......
So if Tennessee won't ban them..... Does that mean that 30' trucks headed south on US129 will bunch up on the TN side of US129 trying to enter NC?....:crazy:

Right about here.......

..... fixed

 

Surely TN will follow suit...

 

I sure hope TN has it well marked on there end. It's not like there is any place then could turn around when they reach the NC line.

Jim

 

Amen it is about time.

Yes the odd truck will find its way over & have to turn around. As time goes by that will stop.

Hallelujah!!! :biggrin5:

 

Why would a truck driver want to get himself into that mess anyway...any alternate route would seem to be quicker?

 

It happens and I'm sure the truck driver is cussing himself out when it occurs. It must be something to see one of those guys backing up hill with a tight "roundhouse" turn. I'll bet they never come back again.....

 

I spent 40+ minutes one time, coasting in front of a short semi truck across the Dragon, waiving off the motorcycles and sports cars who would have hit the truck head-on.

 

We caught up with a truck on 129 just below Deal's Gap Saturday night after the Farewell dinner. He had a blue light escort and had to stop for a chat at the Cheoah Dam bridge. I guess he came from TN. Good thing everyone was at the dinner.

 

How large of a truck? A tractor trailer?

 

This is one problem with gps / nav as opposed to a good old fashioned map, sometimes you don't get a large enough view to really see what your getting yourself into.

I would also be willing to bet that a great percentage of those who have made this mistake are in the lesser expierienced group as opposed to being veteran's.

 

It was a tractor trailer. There was also a tanker truck parked off to the right just after the bridge pointing in the direction of Robbinsville. I don't know how he got there.

 

The Dragon looks like a very tempting short-cut to a truck driver who is looking at a standard map. If they had purchased a proper truck driver's map book, they would know better, but on a quick glance, it looks like the Dragon will save you several hours of drive time.

I too have spent almost an hour driving a turn or two ahead of a semi truck driver who didn't know what he was getting into, warning the oncoming traffic of what was around the next bend. It takes a very skilled truck driver to get a semi across the Dragon without tearing out his/her trailers suspension... even using both lanes and both shoulders.

I wish more people knew this hand signal! When you see someone with the hazzards on and windows open in the rain, waiving their hands frantically you would think that they would get the picture and slow down...

 

I had a motorcyclist use this signal to warn me about a tree in the road on 28 up to the Dragon after a rainy day on Monday. Very nice people up there, wish you could thank them. I can't say that I knew the exact meaning of the signal and I was already under the speed limit, but I knew something was up and slowed down just to be sure. Then it came clear when I saw the tree. Another one tapped his helmet to warn of a LEO. Any hand/arm signal/frantic waving I see now, I will slow down.