Truck ban begins on key Southwest Detroit streets
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A truck driving on Livernois Avenue on Wednesday in Southwest Detroit. Photo: Joe Guillen/Axios
New trucking restrictions in Southwest Detroit neighborhoods go into effect Monday to help address the health and safety hazards facing residents surrounded by persistent truck traffic.
Why it matters: The restrictions will prohibit or limit trucks on several key Southwest roads — including Livernois Avenue, Dragoon Street, Clark Avenue and Scotten Street — where residents have dealt with noise, dust, vibrations and high asthma rates.
Between the lines: The city is effectively prohibiting trucks from using any of the streets between Vernor and Interstate 75 as a cut-through to the highway, officials said Wednesday.
- Southwest is particularly hard-hit by truck traffic because it's surrounded by highways, railroads, logistical and trucking facilities, the Ambassador Bridge, and the soon-to-open Gordie Howe Bridge.
What they're saying: Residents and community leaders are jubilant and relieved to finally have some sort of solution.
- "I feel the rumbles of trucks when they drive down our streets. I fear walking alongside them on our sidewalk," Councilmember Gabriela Santiago-Romero, whose district includes Southwest, said Wednesday at a press conference.
- "Residents have organized and advocated for the city to take action for decades."
State of play: In addition to banning trucks on certain streets, the city will limit truck access for local deliveries along the West Vernor and Springwells corridors.
The intrigue: The city's Department of Public Works has the authority to regulate truck traffic on these roads under existing ordinances, without City Council's approval.
- However, the mayor's administration and council members are interested in strengthening penalties for violators, said Sam Krassenstein, the city's chief of infrastructure.
Threat level: Police will be shifting resources to provide more traffic enforcement for the new rules. The department will also be targeting trucks and trailers parked on streets overnight.
- Officers will use discretion to allow moving trucks or Amazon delivery vehicles, for example.
- Officials have not provided an exact punishment amount. "It's much more severe than just a parking citation," Krassenstein said.
- The city also has a new online tool for residents to report suspected truck violations.