interstate movers down the streets
parents moving from the midwest using an interstate mover. will a semi fit down the streets of park slope? and if not, is that the movers problem or ours?
parents moving from the midwest using an interstate mover. will a semi fit down the streets of park slope? and if not, is that the movers problem or ours?
4:37 was right – it must have been the 55-footer they DIDN’T bring into Brooklyn – I got confused, as it has been awhile, and the one they did bring, while shorter, was way longer than any other truck any movers I ever hired used.
You could get a D.O.T. permit to close the street. Pain in the ass and probably not worth it.
The standard length of a semi-tractor trailer (which means the box without the cab, the part where the driver sits) is 53′ and I believe that 53′ is the longes length of a single box you’ll see on the road. Tandem trailers feature shorter boxes, although the overall length may well exceed 53′.
So I think the above posters meant that the movers brought in something not only shorter (probably around 24′, like a big U-haul) but something not as wide (also like a U-haul.)
Most reputable nationwide movers will know that they have to switch to a shorter and smaller truck right before they get to NYC, and that they will sometimes need to make two trips from wherever they do the transfer. In my move from California they did the transfer in Jersey, near Elizabeth, and they were able to get all of my stuff in the smaller truck so it only took one pass.
The bad thing is that it was crappy rainy weather and they got some of my stuff wet, while breaking a few things that probably would have survived if they didn’t have to do the stupid transfer.
Bottom line? Moving to and from NYC is a total pain in the ass.
Well, it could be the movers’ problem initially, but it will quickly become your parents’ problem when the movers can’t get down the street. Best to disclose and confirm this detail upfront.
Because they’ll be shifting your boxes several times you might want to consider the added expense of having them pack for you. At least have them do the kitchen and furniture so that they are responsible for damage. If something is busted because they just toss and drop things when nobodies there to oversee the truck to truck transfer, they’ll blame your poor packing job. It’s easier to complain if they did the packing. Worked for me on LA to NY.
People do it all the time….part of the absurdity is that we live in charming old neighborhoods built before there were trucks. A reminder of how differently we live in old cities from those in the rest of the country.
What killed me was to the movers, a “short” truck was a 55-footer – they didn’t have the ability to bring in anything smaller, even though my stuff didn’t require such a big truck. Would have been much easier had they brought a smaller truck, or two if need be…
Wait! Where I live (in Park Slope), street cleaning day means “everyone double park for 2 hours day”. Which means that there are still all the cars on the block. And, on the blocks where there’s a bike lane, they have to leave that clear, so they take up even more room!
Just another thing to consider in this absurdity! Good luck!
4:47 again –
forgot to mention that you will need to mark off the other side of the street with tape and chairs and stuff so people won’t double park there during the street cleaning, else your truck (along with double parked cars) will block the street.
Or have them arrive at least a half hour BEFORE street-cleaning hours, and then they can double park across the street so no one double parks across the street, and then they can move the truck over to your side of the street so that you can be in front of your building before the cars are moved back again.
Depending on the width of your street and on the cars parked there, smaller cars can get around the short truck even with cars parked on both sides, but anything larger (and larger stuff does come by all the time during the day) will force them to move the truck, which they won’t like (it will take forever to unload). So you do really need to do all this. With luck, your local movers will be NYC based and will get all of this.
wow, thanks everyone. just confirmed the company will switch everything to a smaller truck…now I’m off to see if they can schedule to come in on a street cleaning day.