The driver of a flatbed tractor-trailer was ejected from the rig's cab and killed yesterday when the vehicle struck a guardrail on a ramp leading to southbound Interstate 95 in Elkridge and overturned on an embankment.

James J. Niziolek, 41, of the 3000 block of O'Donnell St. in East Baltimore, was pronounced dead at the scene, said Lori Vidal, a spokeswoman for the Maryland Transportation Authority Police.

Vidal said Niziolek was hauling a 20-ton coil of steel to Clinton, N.C., and was southbound on Interstate 895 about 2: 30 p.m. when the accident occurred. She said the rig skidded for several hundred feet and came to rest partly on the roadway and partly on the embankment.

Vidal said police reported that Niziolek could have survived the crash if had he been wearing his seat belt.

Vidal said southbound I-895 traffic was detoured onto Washington Boulevard. She said investigators had not determined the cause of the accident.

Pub Date: 7/29/99