Tennessee to ban trucks from The Dragon

[pickelhead]

ERIK SCHELZIG , Associated Press 8:10 a.m. CST December 4, 2014





Tennessee is banning trucks longer than 30 feet from using a twisty stretch of U.S. Route 129 that is known as The Dragon.
The truck ban is welcome news to motorcyclists and sports car enthusiasts who travel long distances to experience the mountain road famous for its 318 curves in 11 miles along the western edge of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
Ron Johnson, the owner of the Tail of the Dragon gift store near Robbinsville, North Carolina, called the decision "long overdue" because tractor-trailers pulling through tight turns can block both lanes of traffic and force cars and motorcycles off the road.
"I've had three close calls on The Dragon, where I'm in the ditch and can't get any further over," he said. "And trucks come through and miss me by an inch."
While trucks have been banned from the North Carolina side of the road for a few years, Tennessee until now only posted signs warning truckers of switchback turns on the route.
"They'd say, well it can't be that bad, and it's another 100 miles to go around," said Johnson, who has in the past taken it upon himself to ride his motorcycle out ahead of trucks to warn oncoming traffic.
"We didn't hold this against the truckers because they didn't know," he said.
State records show of the 1.4 million vehicles that traversed the Tennessee side of the Dragon between 2010 and 2012, there were total of 204 crashes — with motorcycles making up 82 percent of them.
Six of those wrecks resulted in fatalities, including one involving a tractor-trailer. The riders who died on the serpentine road ranged in ages from 24 to 62.
Accidents involving trucks usually cause the road to be blocked for several hours because of its curvy and narrow nature, according to the Tennessee Department of Transportation.
Johnson said that while the Dragon draws enthusiasts from around the country and as far away as South America and the Far East to experience stretches of the road known as "The Whip," ''Revenuer's Straight" and the "Gravity Cavity," the continued presence of trucks has kept some from making their trip — and spending their tourist dollars.
"People contact me all the time wanting to know if they still allow trucks on the Dragon, because they're not going to come if they still do," he said.
Signs detailing the new truck ban will be installed in mid-January.

[Big Arm]

Welcome News

[reissooz]

This is long overdue...

[dndfindley]

This is long overdue...

Now if we could just get the sheriff's department and state troopers banned...

[ARtraveler]

Good news and that should increase the safety factor a bit.

[Bob Denman]

Glad to see this..
I'm surprised that it's taken them this long to figure out that you can't "Sword-Fight in a broom closet."

[shelbydave]

The GPS leads them there all the time. My neighbor takes his 911 up there twice a year with a group of Porsche guys, and it seems they're always meeting up with a trucker who has gotten way over his head because Garmin took him there. One of the guys in the group works in the movie industry, and has his commercial license. He had to actually take over for one trucker who was so freaked out that he was panicked, and couldn't drive the road.

...And once you're on it, there will be no turning a truck around!!

[MouthPiece]

If it is a Govt. road, then I wonder what the ICC has to say about this.

Chris

[BikerDoc]

great news

[dndfindley]

The GPS leads them there all the time. My neighbor takes his 911 up there twice a year with a group of Porsche guys, and it seems they're always meeting up with a trucker who has gotten way over his head because Garmin took him there. One of the guys in the group works in the movie industry, and has his commercial license. He had to actually take over for one trucker who was so freaked out that he was panicked, and couldn't drive the road.

...And once you're on it, there will be no turning a truck around!!

All true, but signs have been posted leading up to the start of the Dragon on the Tennessee side for several years. Truckers have no excuse.

[shelbydave]

All true, but signs have been posted leading up to the start of the Dragon on the Tennessee side for several years. Truckers have no excuse.

Those signs are supposed to be read???

[yamahog]

As a load instructor for a flat bed trucking company I woke up to cussing from the trainee, he took the shortest rout LOL, I had to finish the run, would not recommend it in a truck even with a short flat bed, or even bob tail, but hey the road signs just said not recomended, I need to take the spyder there maybe next year.

[STELLING MAN]

I've been riding the Dragon on two wheels for many years now, but this year Is my first on the what a ride, so good I rode It down and up both..

[maliamd]

Good news and long overdo. The Dragon is getting more crowded every year and that alone makes it very dangerous. There are all types of bikes and riders of all skill levels now on this road. You never know what to expect when you ride the Dragon.

[Chupaca]

some roads are just not modern truck friendly. The semi's have been getting progressively longer and do not fit properly on such winding roads. I see it more for the truckers safety than the fact that it ruins a fun ride for some folks. Truckers tend to find better times to travel such roads but are many times faced with schedules...jmo..

[rgk]

If it is a Govt. road, then I wonder what the ICC has to say about this.

Chris

The ICC no longer exists.

[Art Mann]

I am pleased with the ban. However, from my observation, most of the wrecks are a single rider and the problem is they simply not skilled enough to ride at the speeds they are going.

[900Dave]

tractor trailer this summer on the Dragon. It was shorter than normal. Single axle truck and a singlr axle trailer but still too long for those corners. It took up both lanes. I caught it at a good spot. I was comoing out of a corner while it was in the middle of the next corner and could see it ahead of time. No need for them to be on this road and I have a lot of respect for truckers seeing all the idiots they have to deal with everyday.

[Bob Denman]

I am pleased with the ban. However, from my observation, most of the wrecks are a single rider and the problem is they simply not skilled enough to ride at the speeds they are going.

Sad; isn't it?