Traffic on the Whitestone Bridge is back running smoothly after an accident yesterday shut it down for most of the afternoon when an overhead sign collapsed and blocked all five lanes of traffic in both directions. The sign and its metal support system, the gantry, came down around 1 p.m. when an MTA Bridges and Tunnels contractor struck it with their truck and the crane attached to its back.
The driver of the truck told WCBS-2, "It just came down. There was a little bit of dust—you could tell something happened in front of me, and then when I stopped, you could see clearly the cherry picker hit the sign in half and brought it down."
After redirecting traffic to the Throgs Neck for the rest of the afternoon and evening rush hour, the bridge was reopened by 7 p.m. last night. Two contractors were treated for minor injuries at New York City Hospital of Queens.
