Residents complained about the number of heavy trucks using Bridge Street in South Mountain. The council decided to ban all heavy trucks except for local ones from using the bridge. Courtesy photo Township of North Dundas
WINCHESTER – North Dundas has banned heavy truck traffic on Bridge Street and Sandy Row within the village boundaries of South Mountain.
The decision was made at the Sept. 8 North Dundas council meeting after residents in the area lodged a complaint with the municpality.
Bridge Street is located in the middle of the small village and is a two-lane roadway with residential and commercial driveways on both sides of the road.
The condition of Bridge Street is reasonable according to recent surveys.
Recently there have been complaints of heavy trucks turning left off of Main Street and using Bridge Street to go east or west on the other side of the South Nation River.
“This will be a no truck route except for local deliveries,” said Mayor Tony Fraser.
“Residents will see a benefit. There will be a definite reduction in truck traffic in the neighborhood,” he said.
County roads are better designed to handle heavy trucks.
As the South Mountain and Sandy Row area becomes more residential, the number of heavy trucks using the route to connect with other parts of the county has become an issue.
Fraser said, “The intent is to keep heavy truck traffic away from the residential areas.”
A report to the council about the truck issue on Bridge Street stated: “Based on 2013 traffic data, Bridge Street has annual average daily traffic of around 200 vehicles, 2 per cent of which is truck traffic. Traffic including trucks has increased from the 2013 traffic data.”
Bridge Street crosses over the South Nation River.
The bridge is designed to accommodate heavy truck traffic and cars. The latest bridge inspection was in 2017 and no major problems were discovered.
The report went on, “Staff have received complaints from a resident on Bridge Street with regard to heavy dump trucks using Bridge Street as a through route to access County Rd 3 and County Rd 1. In response, staff have visited the site and have observed dumptrucks using Bridge Street.
The report concluded: “New subdivisions have been built on Sandy Row in South Mountain increasing the pedestrian and vehicle traffic in that area. It is not just truck traffic on Bridge Street that is the concern. The trucks are also a concern in this built up area on Sandy Row.”
Joseph Morin is the Editor of the Eastern Ontario AgriNews, and the Record. He is, despite years of practice, determined to eventually play the guitar properly. He has served the Eastern Ontario community as a news editor, and journalist for the past 25 years with the Iroquois Chieftain, Kemptville Advance, West Carleton Review, and Ottawa Carleton Review in Manotick. He has never met a book he did not like.
