HomeMy WebLinkAbout07/05/2011 03C-2 Status Report on Truck Routes 0 MEMORANDUM .
June 22, 2011
To: Honorable Mayor and City Council
From: Joe Rosenlund
Streets & Traffic Operations Manager
Subject: .Audience Participation Response
Request for Truck Routes
At the June 21 meeting of the city council, Lynn Kittleson requested that the city
consider establishing truck routes to discourage trucks from using local access roads
such as 9 Street. Truck traffic has been migrating onto 9 Street due to several actions
that have occurred over time. 6th Street was the original route. It led directly to the
Boise Cascade mill site and was constructed to handle larger vehicles. The installation
of traffic signals along Yakima Avenue encouraged truck drivers to take alternative
routes to avoid the delay caused by the signals. 8th Street became the new "preferred"
0 route. The recent improvements to 8 Street at the convention center were designed to
slow down or discourage through traffic. What now occurs is that inbound trucks take 9th
Street because of the dedicated right turn lane from the northbound exit of 1-82 and
there is no traffic signal to delay them. Outbound trucks still tend to use 8 Street
because the traffic signal allows more convenient access to eastbound Yakima Avenue.
The creation of truck routes within the city of Yakima has been discussed several times
in the past. While there are many advantages to having designated truck routes.,
implementation faces numerous hurdles. The biggest obstacle is the infrastructure
improvements that are necessary in order to facilitate large trucks on the designated
routes. The city would need to reconstruct most of the arterial roadways and many of
the collector roads with stronger structural support to handle the increased truck
loadings and wider lanes for the trucks to move safely along those routes. The city
would also need to reconstruct the intersections along each of the routes to provide
more turning room and turn -bay storage. Most of these improvements would need to be
in place before the city could designate truck routes. The trucking interests in town
would likely remain - adamantly opposed to "any truck route designations without the
improvements.
Another hurdle is enforcement. In order to enforce the truck route regulations the city
would need to dedicate or hire at least two police officers with specialized training in
commercial truck enforcement. The city would also need to buy at least one vehicle with
0 portable scales and other equipment. The city's current financial status and other
enforcement priorities make these steps unlikely any time soon.
- The city can prohibit trucks on certain roads if it is determined that the roadway is
structurally insufficient or there are design features that make operation of large trucks a
hazard. 9 Street has not shown any significant structural degradation or operational
deficiencies under existing traffic conditions that would warrant prohibiting truck traffic. If
truck traffic were prohibited on 9 Street, the truck drivers would find an alternate route
that may or may not be suitable for truck traffic.
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