Since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, all but the most local truck traffic has been prohibited from crossing Hoover Dam on U.S. 93. According to local papers, the detoured trucks are causing some problems.

The closest alternative route is to take Arizona 68 northeast of Kingman through a high desert mountain pass. But at least two runaway trucks have already succumbed to the steep grade between the pass and Bullhead City, Ariz., where the highway crosses the Colorado River. About 1,000 trucks a day are now rolling through the two cities, according to the Associated Press.
On Oct. 9, an 18-wheeler hauling chocolate syrup lost its brakes westbound on Arizona 69. The rig was able to make it to a runaway truck ramp less than a mile from Bullhead City. On Oct. 14, a tractor-trailer lost control all the way down the highway to the bridge, destroying a car whose driver was not seriously injured.
The Arizona Republic reports that city officials in Bullhead City and across the river in Laughlin, Nev., have sent letters to the Arizona and Nevada transportation departments. DOT officials, however, say there's not much they can do about it. A Hoover Dam bypass, recently approved, will take at least five years to build. In the meantime, Bullhead City officials want the state to make improvements along 68, such as new pullouts where trucks can stop to cool their brakes and at least one more runaway truck ramp.
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