Aug 28, 2008 - 11:19 AM
Christina Commisso, Torstar news services
PICKERING -- The Toronto-bound express lanes on Hwy. 401 have re-opened after a tractor-trailer flipped and crashed into a lamppost early this morning and shut down traffic during rush hour.
The tractor flipped as it was travelling in the westbound lanes on the 401 at Port Union Rd., around 2:20 a.m.
It went out of control and hit the right cement guardrail, crossing three lanes and hitting the light standard, ripping the trailer open and spilling peat moss over the express lanes.
The eastbound and westbound express lanes from Whites Rd. in Pickering to Nielson Rd. in Scarborough were closed during morning rush hour as crews attempted to clear peat off the highway. All lanes have since reopened.
The severity of the crash made clean up difficult. The truck split in two when emergency crews attempted to remove it from the highway, said OPP Const. Dave Woodford.
“It’s like an accordion, it just ripped the side right off, and the bottom frame split in half," he said.
No one was injured in the accident and police are still trying to determine how the driver lost control.
“A lot of commuters have taken alternate routes,” said Woodford, adding, “that’s the good news."
With files from Laura Stone
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