Marshall County Commissioner Stan Klotz is looking to increase enforcement on the county’s No Thru Trucks ordinance.
The commissioners passed the ordinance in January which states that no person shall operate a truck with a gross vehicle weight rating in excess of 26,000 pounds where a posted sign prohibits the action. The operator can access the road for a business purpose or as a resident living on that county road. The restriction does not apply to school buses or fire trucks.
The commissioners may grant permission to an applicant who applies in writing or if alternate routes are unreasonable and the use of the restricted road in the public interest.
Those who violate the ordinance can expect to pay a fine of $300.
Commissioner Klotz noted that semi truck drivers continue to use county roads as a shortcut to their destination and the roads are not built to accommodate heavy truck traffic. Many of them were repaved this summer. He wants to make sure that violators are fined and stay off county roads.
“The bottom line is we don’t have the money to keep fixing these roads,” stated Klotz. “Now that we’ve got them fixed we’ve got to get these truck off of them – these guys taking shortcuts. We’ve got to protect them.”
Klotz, County Attorney Jim Clevenger and Sheriff Matt Hassel are expected to get together to discuss a possible solution with the utilization of reserve officers doing patrols or some sort of taskforce taking action on violations.
