Historic covered bridges are under threat by truck drivers relying on GPS meant for cars

This selection of undated still frames from security video camera footage provided by Michael Grant shows a variety of oversized box trucks crashing through the historic Miller’s Run covered bridge in Lyndon, Vt. Over the years, truck drivers have failed to notice the height warning signs leading to the bridge. (Michael Grant via AP)

LYNDON, Vt. (AP) — One of Vermont’s historic covered bridges is under threat from modern technology. Box truck drivers relying on GPS designed for cars continually crash through Lyndon’s 140-year-old Miller’s Run bridge. That’s despite signs, including a flashing one, to deter vehicles that are too tall or too heavy from crossing. Drivers can face fines of $5,000 from the town, plus state penalties. But the bridge keeps getting whacked. Lyndon is far from alone. According to head of the National Society for the Preservation of Covered Bridges, last November, a tractor trailer truck seriously damaged a covered bridge in Princeton, Illinois, and a bridge in Ohio was damaged in a similar way a year earlier.