SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Authorities have released the name of the trucker who was killed when his big rig plunged off the side of a new section of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge.

The San Francisco medical examiner says Tahir Sheikh Fakhar died in the crash early Monday morning as he drove on the bridge's new S curve.

Investigators say the 56-year-old Hayward man was driving 50 mph, 10 miles above the speed limit, when he lost control of the truck.

The rig hit a rail and went over the side, landing on Yerba Buena Island.

Authorities say Fakhar was an independent trucker who had bought the rig several months ago. He had been working as a subcontractor for JM&R Trucking in Oakland for several months.

The firm's owner described Fakhar as a safe driver who was always prompt.

Authorities said the speed coupled with the shifting load propelled the truck over the side of the bridge.

The California Department of Transportation plans to add more warnings around the S-curve in a continued effort to get people to drive more slowly.

 There have been about 40 crashes on the S-curve since it opened Sept. 8.

(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)