MONTAGUE - A tight squeeze caused the old Iona train station to be stuck in the middle of the Trans-Canada Highway Wednesday morning.
The transport convoy, carrying the train station up front and the sliced-off roof section on a second flatbed behind, ran into trouble at a steel overpass sign near Cherry Valley.
The trucks tried to manoeuvre through the centre opening but got hung up on a sign bracket bolted to the overpass structure.
"It got hung up on the bracket,'' said trucker Scott Carver, one of the drivers hired to transport the building.
Others involved in the transport project worked feverishly atop the roof to loosen the sign bracket and swing it out of the way. Meanwhile, trucks with flashing lights and men waving red flags attempted to slow traffic that passed by wide of the stuck convoy.
The incident began around 11 a.m. and took well over an hour before the train station was freed and rolling on again.
The old Iona train station has spent years in Hazelbrook near the Gay Road as an ice cream and tourist stand as well as a car lot. The new owner is relocating it back to Iona in southeastern P.E.I. - near Belfast - to be renovated for office space.
Train station gets stuck in midst of transport
It was a tight squeeze for the old Iona train station heading for home Wednesday morning when it became tangled in an overhead highway sign in Cherry Valley. Traffic was diverted around the big load in the centre of the Trans-Canada Highway while workers
- Published on November 15th, 2007
- Published on June 19th, 2010
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Steve Sharratt
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Comments
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- frank
- - June 21st, 2010 at 20:38:38
Anyone think of measurement?
Should have hired my brother in law from Borden-Carlton.!!!!!
Oh well we all need a gooood laugh.
Frank.... -
- Peter
- - June 21st, 2010 at 20:35:26
Thanks to all who posted comments about moving the Fodhla (Iona) station back from Hazelbrook. We actually did not get 'stuck' like the Guardian article stated. We stopped to remove the brackets, which we still have and I suspose should return them to the DOT.
We measured the height of the load at Hazelbrook but the trailer. lifting gear, plus station was in the mud and it was a bit difficult to get an accurate measurement.
Apart from the sign we had a trouble free move.
I think it would cost a lot to reproduce the Fodhla station exactly, I considered it. Even if you did reproduce it you would still have a new building, no memories, no place for neighbours or vacationers to come and have a coffee and tell their stories. We will be having an open house as soon as it's renovated.
We'll put up a notice at Coopers Store to announce it.
I will try to restore it to the best of my ability and still make it an usable office. It is going to be a bit of a design challenge considering the 13 foot ceilings. Any suggestions openly accepted.
Thanks again
Peter -
- Scott
- - June 21st, 2010 at 20:26:23
Yes, nice PeterBuilt, I think they are still my favorite truck. Good to see someone looking after the old historic building. Sometimes it is better to restore then to smash it to bits and erect some out-of-place modern building. Too bad they got stuck on the highway. Oh well, the _ _ _ _ it happens, no biggie.
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- steven
- - June 21st, 2010 at 20:21:12
fodlha station wouldn't make a joke but would be correct.
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- all I can say is
- - June 21st, 2010 at 20:20:33
ya, office space in Iona? wonder what for? There isn't much of anything in Iona!
Except their beautiful little church! -
- kate
- - June 21st, 2010 at 20:17:16
I think that the Fodlha station will be proudly received in it's new (old) Iona home. A grand gesture by a man of integrity and pride in the history of P.E.I. Good on ya, Pete.
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- robert
- - June 21st, 2010 at 20:15:55
I Really think they should blame the transportation minister . The opposition party seems to think he works to help himself. Humm a sign like that may fit in Cornwall. As Scott said S--- Happens.
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- Beth
- - June 21st, 2010 at 20:14:45
It's not only in PEI! How many times a year does a transport truck get stuck in the Subway in Moncton despite signs that warn drivers that there is an obstacle ahead and large trucks are not permitted to go taht way. It takes more time and money to free and fix those trucks. This is minor. A lesson for next time! Just remove the brackets when they arent in use or flag them!!!
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- rob
- - June 21st, 2010 at 20:14:18
Just wondering if the workers that are so high up have fall protection gear on and if not somebody is not protecting there workers.
Remeber Safety First. -
- Steve
- - June 21st, 2010 at 20:13:32
It is very easy to loosen a few bolts and swing signs to gain extra clearance.
The walls of this structure intersect the roof at the point where the upper section was sliced off, which would make it impractical to cut the building any lower.
This move was done right- with minimal damage to the structure, and minimal interference with such obstacles as wires and the Cherry Valley sign.
The structure's new owner has done his homework, and is intent on doing what is right for this historic station. -
- Mel
- - June 21st, 2010 at 20:02:29
Only on PEI would this happen! If the driver did not have the measurements of hight and obstacles cleared ahead of time, he should not have been moving this building.
I drive that way often, and after Hurricane Noel went thru, the sign that was bolted to the steel hangers went missing, but the department of highways left the hangers there without any red flags on them for transports or other high passings- the sign missing directed drivers to route 3 to Montague.
The department of highways shiuld not have left this missing sign for so long without some kind of flagging for the hangers. -
- Experienced
- - June 21st, 2010 at 20:00:58
First things first...
The driver is quite simply the driver, it would be the responsibility of the contractor in charge of the move to assure that any obstacles were out of the way as well as measurements being correct. In order to complete a building move, the contractor must apply for a permit to the Dept. of Transportation, including the building, trailer and truck size. Only then would a permit be granted, so in turn rather than placing the blame on the driver, perhaps you should try the contractor or better yet the person who signed the permit. -
- Tuff Truck Man
- - June 21st, 2010 at 19:59:24
thats one fine rig
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- M
- - June 21st, 2010 at 19:57:56
What is the purpose of moving this old building to be renovated for office space in Iona? The cost to renovate will be more than a new building. Is office space in high demand in Iona?
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- Old joke told to me by my
- - June 21st, 2010 at 19:55:58
Two men were taking the train, back in the day of the PEI railroad, when the conductor walks by and announces IONA Station, IONA Station.
One of the men turns around and says to the other man I own a farm, but you don't hear me bragging about it! -
- Gerry
- - June 21st, 2010 at 19:55:48
Why couldn't they have taken a side road to get around the sign?
Route 272 through Village Green connects back to Route 3 at Vernon River, then they could run down Route 24 toward Uigg and cut back to Iona on Route 206.
It isn't like we have a shortage of detour options around here.
Best wishes to the chap who is preserving this station. A friggin' darned shame that we don't have a railway any longer in this province.
Blame Ghiz Sr. and Mulroney for scrapping it in 1989. That's the reason so much traffic is beating our roads to cr*p!!!!
Just think, the feds were given a Constitutional obligation to own and operate the heavy-haul transport system in this province and we let them get out of it for a one-time $200 million payment for ''fixing'' our roads (a provincial responsibility).
Short-sighted or what? -
- steven
- - June 21st, 2010 at 19:55:14
fodhla would be even more correct
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- Bernie
- - June 21st, 2010 at 19:44:50
A bit of humor.... wounder if this was a sign of the times (turn left for Fort MacMurray)...... Forgot my metric tape.... the ground has swelled from the cold weather. Just Keep on trucking my P.E.I. good friends!!!!
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- Gerry
- - June 21st, 2010 at 19:36:18
This was the original Iona station that was moved to Mount Herbert back in the 90s and was used as that ''Happy Red's'' ice cream stand and used car dealership.
The guy who bought it is returning it to Iona and is restoring it back to its original condition (ie. maintain historical integrity) and will use it as his own office space.
I think it's great that a private citizen sees the benefit in preserving and restoring such a building.
We don't see very much of that happening from Islanders these days. Everytime I read The Guardian, I see most posts calling for demolishing the old historic buildings and put in a tilt-up big box building. Such ''progressive'' Islanders ---- their mentality should be thrown into the Strait. -
- AL
- - June 21st, 2010 at 19:34:16
I'm pretty sure it's not only on PEI...I saw the same thing on main street Moncton yesterday only with a load of new cars under the overpass!
