Tuesday, January 27, 2015

DRIVER CHARGED IN ROUTE 422 TRUCK CRASH WITH DRIVING AT AN UNSAFE SPEED, RECKLESS DRIVING, CARELESS DRIVING AND DRIVING WITH A SUSPENDED LICENSE




DRIVER CHARGED IN ROUTE 422 TRUCK CRASH WITH DRIVING AT AN UNSAFE SPEED, RECKLESS DRIVING, CARELESS DRIVING AND DRIVING WITH A SUSPENDED LICENSE

January 24, 2015

SANATOGA, LOWER POTTSGROVE TOWNSHIP, PENNSYLVANIA – A 55-year-old Shippensburg PA man, whose accident in a large truck he was driving ended up blocking traffic for hours earlier this month on U.S. Route 422 at Armand Hammer Boulevard, has been charged with five violations in the incident, including operating with a suspended or revoked commercial vehicle license.

Lower Pottsgrove Police Ofc. Matthew Meitzler, who investigated the crash, announced early this morning (Friday, Jan. 23) that driver James Monahan has also been charged with failure to drive a vehicle at a safe speed, reckless driving, careless driving, and failure to use a restraint system.

The owner of the trucking company that employed Monahan faces traffic-related violations as well, Meitzler added.

The single-vehicle accident occurred Jan. 8 (2015; Thursday) at 7:22 a.m. on westbound 422, as rush-hour commuters were headed to their destinations. Investigations and witness interviews indicate Monahan lost control of the truck, Meitzler alleged, and struck a guardrail and concrete barrier in the 422 construction zone just as he approached the Armand Hammer Boulevard on-ramp.

The speed limit in the construction zone is 40 miles per hour.

Upon impact the tractor-trailer, owned by Ranveer Trucking Inc. of Harrisburg PA, “traveled a short distance west and left the highway,” Meitzler reported, crossing over the on-ramp and plunging into a north-side embankment. Monahan was thrown backward into the truck’s rear sleeper cab and became trapped. He suffered a head injury, and was found unconscious by emergency responders who extricated and rushed him to a Reading hospital.

422’s westbound lanes were closed for about two hours, the officer noted, as township police, Sanatoga Fire Company apparatus and a Goodwill Ambulance crew arrived to find the truck and trailer “completely” blocking the ramp. The snarled commute didn’t resume until after the wreckage was towed from the scene, he added.

Rupinder Sidhu, 42, of Harrisburg, who Meitzler said is the owner of Ranveer, has been charged with permitting an unauthorized person to drive, and permitting a violation of title.