Low bridge still problem on I-465

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) - An interstate mess tied up traffic for hours Wednesday evening . The cause: a too-tall truck slammed into a low bridge, leaving debris from its load Interstate 465.

The truck crashed into the top of the Allisonville Road bridge that goes over I-465 on the northeast side.

"It's not the lowest bridge we have in the system here in Indianapolis but it is low," said Harry Maginity, spokesman for INDOT.

The bridge has a clearance of 14 feet 2 inches in the westbound lanes. INDOT says any vehicle over 13 feet 6 inches must apply for a special permit through the Indiana Department of Revenue.

Once a permit is issued, drivers are provided a route that will avoid low bridges. Maginity says the driver of the semi who struck the bridge on Wednesday wither didn't have a permit, or he had a permit and didn't follow the routing. State Police are investigating to determine what happened.

The Allisonville Road bridge has a history of trucks hitting or scraping the underside. It isn't the only one. In the metro area, there are low clearance bridges at Virginia Street and Calvary Street.

The bridge at Allisonville Road will be rebuilt this summer. Crews will widen the overpass to 8 lanes and raise the bridge height an additional 5 feet.

Construction is set to begin after Memorial Day. The entire project is slated to take 135 days.