Oxford Village is looking into possibly placing weight and time restrictions on trucks traveling along W. Burdick St.
A 6:30 p.m. public hearing is scheduled for the village council’s Tuesday, Aug. 12 meeting at 22 W. Burdick St.
The village is considering prohibiting, via local ordinance, trucks weighing more than 40,000 pounds (gross weight including cargo) from using the road. Officials are also considering barring all truck traffic between 11 p.m. and 8 a.m. Exceptions would be made for local deliveries.
‘The point is to get some governance over this roadway and you have the authority to do that,? said village attorney Bob Davis at last week’s council meeting.
Reducing resident complaints regarding excessive noise and vibration from truck traffic is one reason for the proposed restrictions.
‘Just this morning (June 28), the president of the Conda Lane HOA (Homeowners Association) told me the worst part about the truck traffic on Burdick St. is being vibrated out of bed at 5 (a.m.),? wrote village Police Officer Dave Churchill in a memo to his superiors. ‘They were overjoyed at the possibility of restrictions.?
The other reason is to protect the village’s investment of $467,152 to reconstruct a badly-deteriorated stretch of W. Burdick St. west of Ashley Way.
In the meeting packet, council was provided information indicating that one heavy truck can produce pavement damage equivalent to thousands of passenger cars.
‘I just want something so that our half-million-dollar road survives,? said Councilwoman Sue Bossardet. ‘It goes beyond keeping the residents happy. We’ve spent a half-million dollars on this road and I don’t want it beat up. I think the trucks need to find an alternate route . . . or they can pay the $500,000 for it.?
She pointed out the village needs to act fast because W. Burdick St., which has been closed due to the reconstruction project since June 11, is expected to re-open on July 26.
‘We need to get busy on this,? she said.
Due to the road closure, truck traffic is currently being required to use Dunlap Rd. to travel between M-24 and Seymour Lake Rd.
As a result, Churchill believes W. Burdick St. residents are ‘kind of getting used to the quiet.?
He explained to council the goal of the proposed weight/time restrictions is to find an ‘amicable? solution that satisfies both truck drivers and residents.
‘We don’t want to inconvenience (truck drivers) too badly, but again, (we want to enable) the residents (to) have some quiet time (and) some peaceful enjoyment of their property every night,? Churchill said.
Bossardet noted she believes the time restrictions could be shortened by two hours. ‘I think 8 (a.m) is stretching it. I think 6 a.m. would be more in keeping with . . . what the residents along there (want to see) and they’d be happy with that,? she said.
Davis told this reporter he’s researching the issue to ‘make sure every ordinance provision (concerning truck traffic) is lawful, enforceable and doesn’t violate anyone’s rights.?