VERGENNES, Vt. (WCAX) – As state transportation officials continue to mull a decades-long problem of truck traffic in Vergennes, frustration is mounting from local residents to get rid of the big rigs.
The sight and sound of tractor-trailers driving through downtown Vergennes is common in downtown Vergennes. The state says about 750 of the big rigs roll along Route 22A on any given day, causing frustration for locals.
“I don’t think the trucks are appropriate for this road,” said Eileen Wullschleger, who lives with her husband, Phil. outside of downtown Vergennes.
“We are concerned about the safety of the bridge that they cross,” Phil Wullschleger said.
“They do good things for us, but these are not the roads that can take these kinds of trucks,” Eileen Wullschleger said.
The Vermont Agency of Transportation says it has heard the complaints and is looking for ways to divert truck traffic around the downtown.
“It is taking a look at possible future route alignments and comparing them,” said Matthew Arancio of VTrans.
VTrans and local officials have studied the issue, and last year presented the PEL Study, which includes five options, including building a completely new road for trucks that bypasses the city altogether. But Arancio says there are no firm proposals on the table.
“Years before anything can happen. Right now the focus is on evaluating alternatives and seeing what alternatives would be brought forward as a part of future planning process,” he said.
So what do truck drivers think about a possible new route?
“If I have a delivery in that area, then no, I got to go through. If I can avoid it, yeah, I’ll keep on going,” said Travis Howard, a truck driver from Grafton.
Bypass roads can lead to more than just trucks skirting the town, they can also hurt businesses. But the Wullschlegers say a detour wouldn’t deter them from a Vergennes visit.
“I want to see the little towns. I want to stop in the shops in the little town,” Eileen Wullschleger said.