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PennDOT: Truckers Ignoring Exit Ramp Ban Could Have Deadly Consequences

SCRANTON — The driver of a tractor trailer that crashed near the Viewmont Mall in Scranton may now face citations for a slew of violations. Wednesday̵...

SCRANTON -- The driver of a tractor trailer that crashed near the Viewmont Mall in Scranton may now face citations for a slew of violations.

Wednesday's crash in Lackawanna County is also shedding new light on the problem of truckers ignoring a truck ban and taking a ramp that they aren't supposed to take.

The interchange near the Viewmont Mall is one of the busiest sections of road in Lackawanna County. It's where Routes 6, 11, 307, and 81 all come together.

Traffic was at a standstill just after that crash Wednesday morning. And PennDOT officials said it could have been avoided if the trucker obeyed a weight restriction.

Many drivers on the North Scranton Expressway were in the wrong place at the wrong time Wednesday when they were stuck north and south of a nasty tractor trailer crash. Police said the trucker was in the wrong place, too. The truck exited Interstate 81 South on a ramp that's off limits for trucks of that size.

Leading up to the exit there are three signs saying trucks weighing more than 10 and a half tons need to keep going, and PennDOT says it's pretty clear why.

"We do that because obviously you're coming downhill onto a t-intersection. We've had at least two crashes like this and a few fatalities down here," said PennDOT spokesperson James May.

Four people were hurt after a similar crash in 2011.

PennDOT officials said when the crash happened Wednesday, the next vehicle to come down the restricted ramp was another overweight tractor trailer.

Workers at Pet Palace on nearby Business Route 6 watched the traffic back up Wednesday far past their window. They said they see tractor trailers on the banned exit ramp all the time, but never thought of the consequences.

"We see trucks go past the store and down at the other end every day, probably every hour," said Curtis Rost, an employee at Pet Palace. "I've never seen it turn into a problem. But after yesterday obviously, bad things can happen."

No one was hurt in the crash Wednesday, but PennDOT officials think if the traffic there had been busier someone could have been seriously hurt, even killed. State police are expecting to cite the tractor trailer driver next week.

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