For people who already feared driving on bridges, the collapse of Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge may have intensified that fear. For others, that fear is new.
For the past 11 years, Steven Eskew has run Kent Island Express, with a fleet of drivers who will take the wheel for a fee. The Chesapeake Bay Bridge poses 4.3 miles of terror for people with gephyrophobia – the fear of bridges.
The tragedy on the Key Bridge over the Patapsco River has given rise to more business over the bay, Eskew said, with 12 to 20 calls per day.
Since the bridge collapse, many of the calls are from people simply seeking assurance about the integrity of the Bay Bridge.
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“We are P.R., information, therapists and drivers,” Eskew said as another call from a customer came in.
The process starts with a phone call at least one hour before a driver plans to cross to coordinate a meeting spot on either side of the bridge.
The driver and passengers share conversation, if the passengers would like. The company supplies sleep masks. Some people bring blankets.
“Six-foot-three, six-foot-five guys that will get in the back seat, and they’ll get on the floor and they’ll just cover themselves up,” Eskew said.
For some drivers, heading eastbound is OK but going westbound is scary.
“When you’re going westbound, it’s more open, so they can see the sea,” Eskew said.
The company also gets motorcyclists and bicyclists across. There's one thing the company won't let a scared driver do: get in the trunk. "That's a big no," Eskew said.
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Eskew grew up in the shadow of the bridge. He said he sees its beauty but also can relate with what people fear.
“I understand what their issues are,” he said.
