By Pauline Masson –
Candlewick Lane. The name conjures up images of a storybook place of hospitable homes and happy residents. But the residents here say their happiness is hampered by tractor trailers using Candlewick Lane as a thoroughfare to the industrial plants to the east.
For more than a decade, the residents have petitioned the city to deter big rigs from entering their residential street.
Now, they say is the right time for the City to take definitive measures to route the trucks off Candlewick Lane.
They say a proposal to rezone property for a ten-lot industrial park that, if approved, would be entered off Industrial Drive is certain to increase tractor trailer traffic on Candlewick unless the city devises traffic measures.
An ordinance to rezone the proposed industrial park property from NU non-urban to M-1 light industrial is on the board of aldermen meeting agenda for Tuesday, September 6. The measure is listed as “Tabled.” It is uncertain whether aldermen are prepared to un-table the measure and take action.
Candlewick residents want the City to fix the truck traffic problem before they rezone the property for the new industrial park.
This is an old and complex problem. In 2011, I reported that the City announced plans to determine the amount of traffic on Candlewick Lane leading to and from the industrial park to the east of the subdivision.
“The one-block long street was not constructed as a through street but through traffic to the industrial park adds to the wear and tear on the street,” then Mayor Herb Adams said.
Adams also noted that a public awareness campaign along with some signs should persuade some drivers to avoid the street.
Later that year, officials discussed placing a gate at the end of Candlewick, blocking the entrance to the industrial park. The Pacific Fire District notified the city that the gate would have to allow fire trucks to get through in an emergency.
Ed Bruns, a Candlewick Lane resident and then Pacific Fire District board chairman said the fire district would work with the city to determine the best approach to a gate between the industrial park and the one-block-long subdivision.
Adams said he was putting $10,000 in the new budget to be applied to improvements on substandard streets like Candlewick.
From 2011 to today, the city has discussed traffic counts, truck routes, signs, and the ubiquitous GPS systems that direct big rig drivers from the city entrance to their destination.
I recently took a drive from the east bound I-44 exit at Viaduct Street, to the industrial plants on Industrial Drive and a proposed new industrial park. I used three different driving direction apps on my cellphone to give me directions to the industrial plants. All three directed me to Hwy N and Candlewick Lane. One used Lamar Parkway, one Fourth street and one Payne Street.
I live on Payne Street and I can report that several times a week I see big rigs in front of my house headed for Congress Street. Occasionally I see one making the difficult U-turn at West Union street after seeing the weight limit sign posted there
One federal study found that road damage from one 18-wheeler is equivalent to the impact of 9,600 cars. A fully loaded tractor-trailer weighs 80,000 pounds, 20 times more than a typical passenger car at 4,000 pounds, but the wear and tear caused by the truck is exponentially greater.
Truck are arguable the most common and most efficient vehicles for moving goods from one location to another, so the challenge facing aldermen is. how to direct them to streets built for heavy traffic. Some aldermen say the best bet is to contract a professionally engineered traffic study, focused on truck traffic throughout the city.
In an ideal world the needs and wishes of all the stakeholders in the new industrial development could be met. The property owners could sell their property. The developer could create a new industrial park. The City fathers could rezone the property without creating havoc for the neighboring residents. And the Candlewick Lane residents could be freed from continuous semi on their residential street.
I know this doesn’t solve the core of the problem, but you can submit issues like this where a residential street is being used by GPS apps. They can easily flag Candlewick Lane as not allowing thru traffic. I think if the city submitted this to Waze, Google Maps, and Apple Maps that would probably cover 90% of the GPS users. I’m attaching a link below that will take you to the instructions on doing this in Waze. In this situation, Candlewick Lane just needs to be marked as a “Private Road”.
https://wazeopedia.waze.com/wiki/India/Editing/Roads#Private_Road
several past “city fathers’ claim they have notified said GPS groups but were told they must wait for a period of time( sometimes a year or more) for a system update to be made, but it never seems to happen.
put up weight limit signs and ENFORCE them, truckers will quickly spread the word
Put a gate for fire and emergency flood access, they have lock boxes for gate keys where emergency agencies use a universal key for to open. one brand is KNOX BOX . shift workers would just have to learn to get up a little earlier. I used to commute 55 minutes to work, a often left early because of traffic reports or weather .