UPDATE: Heavy Trucks & Safety on our Streets
Back in November, when I first posted about truck routes and safety, I committed to keeping you updated on this project that will enhance safety on our streets.
During the January 15th City Council meeting, we had the first reading of a proposed new Truck Route Ordinance. This ordinance creates truck routes through our city and gives our police department the legal authority to enforce them.
Beyond the obvious concerns about safety in our school zones and side streets, there are three other reasons this needs to be addressed;
New technologies like Waze and Google Maps are moving more truck traffic to our side streets, as 99W, Roy Rogers Road and Tualatin-Sherwood Road continue to get more congested.
Starting in 2020, the county will be launching a project to widen both Tualatin-Sherwood Road and Roy Rogers Road to five lanes, from the current configuration of three lanes. This will drive more trucks onto our side streets during that construction.
With the new high school opening in 2020, we need to make sure that school zones are safe for our children and young adults.
The streets that will be designated as truck routes through this proposed ordinance are the following:
Oregon State Highway 99W (Pacific Highway) (State Road)
Roy Rogers Road (County Road)
Tualatin-Sherwood Road (County Road)
Oregon Street between Tualatin-Sherwood Road and SW Tonquin Road (County Road)
SW 124th Avenue (County Road)
SW Murdock Road (City Road)
SW Baker Road (City Road)
SW Tonquin Road (County Road)
There are three additional roads that we would like to restrict thru truck traffic on, including Brookman, Elwert and Edy Roads. Since these are county roads, the city council cannot act alone, so city staff is working with the county to make this happen.
Next Steps: Ideally, we will be finalizing plans with the county and will then have the proposed ordinance in front of the council for a second reading, ending with an up or down vote.
If you have ideas about how to best implement this project or concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out to me. As always, you are always welcome to come to a council meeting and provide input in the process.
As this project continues to move forward, I will provide updates on this blog.
