Posted on 03/30/2024 9:30:34 AM PDT by delta7
can’t begin to count the major detours in and around major cities (and DOT scales, lol!) I had to make while trucking.
———
Thank you for validating Armstrong’s information. This was no ordinary bridge, it effects our diesel prices and food supply.
but nothing earth shattering to the economy.
——-
It appears you didn’t read the article, expect higher diesel costs and food.
The likelihood of this being the result of anything but U.S. government agents are pretty small. they want to profit from the chaos. The U.S government has been a bastion of tyranny for decades. I put nothing at all past the evil minions that work for it and do its bidding
The port channel will surely be open in a couple weeks to make the dem pols look good.
Sure, local fuel prices will go up. But for trucks running the eastern seaboard, taking a 30-40 mile detour around that closed route, is not a big deal when driving 600 miles a day.
As always, truckers will get updates directly from logistics where to go to save as much lost time as possible, where to buy the lowest priced fuel, etc. Even local truckers will have advice over the cb radio.
Because of blizzard caused pile ups on interstate highways, I’ve been routed down posted (no trucks) roads and streets by local law enforcement. There will be some of that going on.
Also notice the lack of interviews with the worker who refused medical treatment at he scene. Did DOT allow an undocumented illegal to work on a piece of important infrastructure. Mayor Pete is probably adopting him now to get 3 months maternity leave. The fix for this type of bridge is a spoil fill zone surrounding the abutments so ships run aground when they leave the channel center. yes it means a narrower channel, but a safer bridge. Why isn’t Mayor Pete calling for a fix on major port bridges. or replace dangerous bridges of this type with suspension bridges. I guess Pothole Pete is afraid of environmental impact statements. or his green supporters. EV’s for all. /s
I am still thinking this over and waiting for more information. While I suppose the vessel had to turn to starboard as it did to pass under the bridge, before the power (and lights) went out, it was already too far to the starbord side and heading right for the pier. The last-second turn to port was too little, too late.
Who was piloting as it approached the bridge?? From what I gather, the two harbor pilots on board should have vessel aligned properly before the power failed (or was cut?). It looks like they did not.
It wasn’t planned. It wasn’t an act of God. It was a normal old boring accident. And there’s only 2 groups of people saying otherwise:
con-artists
morons
Don’t be either. And the bridge problems can be worked around. Not the first time an important bridge has gone down. Won’t be the latest. Things break, it’s an imperfect world.
You failed your Detect Humor Attempt roll....
You can beg all you want. Out here in reality there were no explosives. And saying otherwise is perpetuating idiotic lies, spreading stupid like an STD.
“this black swan event was extremely strange, catastrophic for the US supply chain, and certainly a black swan event. For the purpose of this post, I will refrain from speculation”
It is hypocrisy to call it a “black swan” event and then say he will refrain from speculation, when, on the face of it to call it a black swan event IS mere speculation.
No, the Francis Scott Key Bridge is not the only major route from the Port of Baltimore to major east-west and north-south highways and that inludes highways capable of handling hazardous materials. The Bridge is only the most convenience route if what is desired is to head south from Baltimore. So, meanwhile, some traffic will have to go a short ways north from the port, then east to get to the next major north-south route. The supply chain issue will have some added expense TO SOME SHIPMENTS but will not be an overall major issue for shipping altogther, given the percentages of shipments that only want to go north or west and not south to begin with.
“Let me begin by explaining how crucial the Francis Scott Key Bridge was to America’s supply chain. Around 52.3 million tons of international cargo estimated to be worth $80.8 billion passed through the port in 2023. Around 4,900 trucks, carrying around $28 billion in goods, must be rerouted due to the bridge collapse.”
As I noted above Armstrong implies untruths. As I explained above the whole of the $80.8 billion in cargo and 4,900 trucks with $28 billion in goods will not have to be rerouted, only that portion needing to arrive from or go out to a direction south of Balitimore. That traffic needing to arrive from or go out to the west or the north will not require rerouting.
Yes, HAZMATs are prohibited from both the older Harbor Tunnel (1957) and the newer Fort McHenry Tunnel (1985). But the alternate route is to go the long way around the Baltimore Beltway which is how it worked before the Francis Scott Key bridge was completed in 1977. A longer route, yes, but not insurmountable.
The Fort McHenry Tunnel closed a gap that previously existed in I-95 through Maryland. The Key Bridge closed the gap what once existed on the south end of the Baltimore Beltway.
I remember when the south end of the Baltimore Beltway had traffic lights and then came to a dead end at Richie Highway
This was a conspiracy by the Chinese, Venezuela, and Cuba to draw the USA into a war with the Russians in Ukraine to distract us from the war that China will wage against Taiwan and the islands of the Philippines and draw our support for Israel away to give Iran the chance to resupply Hamas, and send their leaders to Venezuela to a leadership seminar with the Cuban government leaders.
How’s that for a conspiracy theory???/s
You forgot environmentalists. Anything that involves a hazmat route is always environmentalists.
Food around here isn’t shipped from Maryland, and the spread between diesel and gasoline is the smallest that it’s been in 4 years.
Like I said - regional impact, not a national one. I thought coal might take a hit, but it doesn’t look like much comes through Baltimore.
Might want to avoid the Chesapeake Bay clams and oysters for a few years.
The issue isn't the truck traffic across the bridge, it is the fact that almost all the port itself can't be accessed by the ships until the wreckage is cleared. So the goods won't be coming in or out of Baltimore at all. Cars are the big thing; everything else can be re-routed to ports north or south of there. Jacksonville and Brunswick are the other two big RoRo destinations (although other ports can handle some.) Shipping cars to the southern ports from Europe and then back north by train is going to add a lot of costs to those imports. And I'm not sure how well those two can scale.
“The issue isn’t the truck traffic across the bridge, it is the fact that almost all the port itself can’t be accessed by the ships until the wreckage is cleared”
That issue will be taking care of by sometime this summer I imagine. Present and soon-to-be shipments at the port will be diverted to other east coast ports. Expensive temporary adjustments for a few months but it is not like the goods will not be moved at all.
The longer issue is the bridge traffic but adjustments for that will be made.
BTT
Accidents are not economic black swan events. At least not by the definition in the book. After the event happens, you should be able to look at the data and see the event forming.
This is not even close to anything but a major screw up.
Harbors use Pilots. The pilots are local experts who bring in ships every day. They are licensed and specially trained for the specific harbor.
If a terrorist got a job as a pilot, they sure are playing the long game.
Expand Savannah and screw that place. They can pay extra for the longer deliveries.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.