Truck hits railway bridge in Shortsville, moves it off foundation

SHORTSVILLE, N.Y. — A utility truck hit a railway bridge Tuesday morning, moving the bridge about one and a half inches off its foundation. The rail line that goes over the bridge was shut down for Finger Lakes Railway to assess the damage.

According to the Ontario County Sheriff’s Office, Gregory A. Hale, 45, of Manchester, was driving a 2019 Freightline utility truck owned by Ferguson Electric at about 8 a.m. Tuesday. he was heading north on East Avenue, past the intersection with Clark Street, and struck the railway bridge just north of Clark Street. His truck had a height clearance of 12-foot-8, while the bridge’s clearance was 9-foot-6, deputies said.

Hale was ticketed with failure to obey a traffic control device.

Shortsville and Manchester public works departments responded to the scene.