Some low bridges, just like the 11-foot-8 bridge or just about any bridge on Boston’s Storrow Drive, are notorious for tearing open tall vans that drive beneath them. However none have as a lot attraction as “Huge Penny,” a 12-foot bridge in Lansing, Michigan’s Outdated City district that just lately claimed its a hundredth sufferer since 2004. The bridge is so well-liked among the many locals that they threw a celebration to rejoice this truck munching milestone, stories WLNS.
Huge Penny is a railroad bridge over Pennsylvania Avenue close to Lindbergh Drive and Potter Park Avenue. You may even discover it on Google Maps by its title. It’s distinctive amongst bridges that take pleasure in a daily food regimen of vans in that it clearly exhibits its intentions with a set of fangs and a pair of googly eyes. These come courtesy of a pair of nameless directors of the STUPID Lansing Fb group, stories Mlive. Whereas there are numerous silly Fb teams, this one is an acronym for “Society for Completely Ineffective Pranks and Immature Dumbassery.”
Whereas some locations outlaw the innocent ornament of public property, Lansing has allowed Huge Penny’s to stay, maybe in hopes of attracting truck drivers’ consideration earlier than driving underneath it after lacking quite a few indicators and flashing lights warning of the bridge’s low peak. This has proved to be in useless. Huge Penny claimed one more sufferer lower than 12 hours after its new face was put in.
Huge get together for Huge Penny
The free neighborhood get together featured a giveaway and Huge Penny trivia. Ozone’s Brewhouse supplied themed food and drinks specials. Artist Ryan Holmes created a portray of Huge Penny throughout the get together, which was then auctioned off. The celebs of the present had been the native band Deer & Elk, who wrote a tune all about Huge Penny. Even the official Metropolis of Lansing Fb web page bought in on the enjoyable, asserting a parody emblem that made enjoyable of the failed Cracker Barrel rebrand.
I love how Lansing has taken what may very well be construed as a failed piece of infrastructure and turned it right into a folks hero as a substitute. I’ve by no means seen a celebration on Storrow Drive throughout faculty move-in week, until you depend the inevitable horn get together and site visitors jam, which I do not. In some unspecified time in the future, the ever-growing variety of truck impacts will in all probability require Huge Penny to be demolished and rebuilt. That might be the time to extend clearance, leaving Huge Penny hungry as vans cross harmlessly beneath. Till then, we are able to cheer on its vengeance on truckers who ignore the warnings and drive straight into its toothy grasp.