By David Fleet
dfleet@mihomepaper.com
Goodrich — On Monday night the Goodrich Village Council postponed a vote for a second time on a proposed heavy truck route ordinance around the village until October 2024. The council then voted to conduct a traffic study on East and West Hegel roads.
The proposed ordinance, introduced in July, emphasized safety of the village citizens, truck noise and vibration along with deterioration of those streets not designated for truck traffic. The ordinance would restrict vehicles with a gross greater than 10,000 pounds. Some of the excluded vehicles would be school buses, emergency vehicles, motor homes, farm tractors, utility service vehicles, road construction vehicles, refuse trucks while making pick-ups within residential districts.
A council motion was made during the August meeting to put the truck route ordinance on the September agenda.
“The reason this is on the agenda tonight is we (council) is still doing research, investigating (the traffic),” said Keith Walworth, council president. “We’ve reached out to MDOT, Genesee County Road Commission, TIP (Transportation Improvement Program.”
As part of the study the village will use GCRC traffic counters for one week to determine the number of vehicles.
During a public hearing in July about a dozen area residents that expressed their concerns regarding the proposed truck route. Their considerations for a possible route include the alternative usage of Perry, Green and Gale roads. Many comments focused on the congestion created at the Perry-Gale intersection in Atlas. In addition to sharp curves in Atlas the road also includes a stop sign at the top of a hill, a possible challenge for trucks. The alternative routes could also require M-15 traffic lights at both Green and Perry roads for heavy trucks. Also, some residents were concerned heavy truck traffic would damage and speed on the soon-to-be paved Green Road between Ridge and Gale roads.
During the July meeting, Shannon McCafferty, president-pro tem responded to the concerns.
“I hear everyone’s concerns,” said McCafferty. “People have made valid points for us to re-look at the (ordinance). I don’t want to see more accidents in the community. But, it’s also the responsibility to protect taxpayer money and when we have to fund fixing a main thoroughfare then have to special assess folks in subdivisions where roads are torn up, we need to think about everyone in the community. I don’t like to see my tax money wasted.”