Truck traffic
January 9th, 2008 by 
Alica
Do you think semi trucks should be allowed to drive on Redwood Boulevard? City Council members have banned big trucks on all Brandon roads, but they haven’t decided yet if they will ban trucks on Redwood or not.
On the one hand, the city shouldn’t provide a way for trucks to avoid the scales on the interstate. But on the other hand, Brandon might get a reputation for being unfriendly if trucks are banned everywhere.
Even with a ban, trucks making pick ups or deliveries within the city limits still would be able to do so.
What are your thoughts?
Posted in Uncategorized | 
January 9th, 2008 at 7:40 am
What a mixed message, do I want to conduct business in Brandon or just go down the road to SF. Do I want to put more jobs into Brandon or just let it be a bedroom community.
The bottom line is do we already have too many laws on the books which restrict our growth do we need another one?
January 9th, 2008 at 8:15 am
Simple man,
How does allowing loaded semi’s as through traffic restrict our growth??
Sit at Casey’s someday and watch the constant stream of Myrl and Roys trucks turn onto Redwood. Believe me, they’re not stopping to buy gas and a pop. They use Brandon as a through street because it’s easy and we let them. (and many are coming from the other direction off I-90 to avoid the scale)
If you were a resident along N. Sioux and Redwood would you be okay with a semi hauling by your house every 5 minutes?
How much strain does all that weight cost the city in street repairs? How does that affect your pocketbook?
Obviously we DON’T have too many laws that restrict growth or we wouldn’t be the fastest growing community in SD.
The interstate is for truck traffic, not city streets.
We’re not talking about restricting business as delivery trucks are okay, we’re talking about trucks using Brandon as a through street. Sooner or later a child, pedestrian or car will be hit by a loaded semi on one of our city streets and it will be too late.
January 9th, 2008 at 9:01 am
I live on East Redwood and my driveway is right on Redwood. There are 11 young children in the 8 townhouses near me.
The semi trucks and people flying down that street scare me.
We had one car shoot off the road, across two driveways and land on a third driveway a few years ago. It was in the afternoon when kids were out playing.
I wish there were speed bumps on Redwood, stop lights at the intersection of Redwood and Splitrock.
I narrowly avoided getting hit head on this morning going to work. I turned right onto Splitrock from East Redwood and some young guy turned left onto Redwood not from the middle of the intersection but started his turn in front of the real estate/chiropractor building on the corner! So when I turned right into the far right lane on Splitrock, he was in his 50mph turn to cut across all lanes of Redwood. I of course did not know this till I did my right turn and saw his face in his car as he did a hard turn to not kill me.
Please put stop lights at that intersection!
January 9th, 2008 at 9:16 am
Don’t worry, our GOB city council will solve this problem. They will come up with a solution that will be in the best interest of public safety. I am confident they will, just buy them a beer and a shot at Sneaker’s and you are in. Nobody has had the nerve to stand up to semi’s skipping the scale for years and I don’t see that changing anytime soon. The BPD could sit and get a semi every half hour skipping the scale, but is that all we want our police force doing? The city council should set the standard. Because I gurantee when the truck driver’s start getting the big fines these tickets bring with them the word will travel fast. As far as Simple Man, or get a clue man, is concerned, having a dedicated truck route is not going to affect the business in Brandon. Most of the truck traffic is near the industrial park, lets keep it there. I am fortunate enough to live in a part of town where the trucks do not come down the street, and that is the way it should be city wide. The city council will probably drop the ball on this one….Did MedStar start a trucking company?
January 9th, 2008 at 9:55 am
#4 Please schedule your anger management classes ASAP. You are going to give yourself a heart a attack any day now. Then we will have to hear all about your ambulance saga because we all know your feelings on MedStar….
Back to the topic at hand. I see the issue both ways. Redwood Blvd. has been called the truck by-pass for years. The city should NEVER have allowed houses/residences to be built that have to deal with truck traffic in the first place. POOR long term planning is the issue here.
Now that the current (and future) council will have to fix/deal with the problem, I feel that truck traffic should be diverted to the interstate. Safety is the first concern and road wear, etc. is secondary. #3 above is absolutely correct - a stoplight is way overdue at the intersection of Redwood & Sioux. Again, where is the planning on this????
January 9th, 2008 at 10:01 am
No but, they won’t want the trucks going by Medstar’s business either! And that came out of the city councils mouth at a meeting. Believe me, Medstar gets want they want including variances to operate in their current location. And they have no right to complain (but do) about their neighbors, because the neighbor was there BEFORE they got there variance for sleeping quarters!
January 9th, 2008 at 10:08 am
#5…not sure where the anger management class suggestion stems from, as I don’t see the issue with what #4 said. As for your question about a stoplight at the intersection of Redwood and Sioux…????????? Where is there an intersection of Redwood and Sioux? Just wondering.
January 9th, 2008 at 10:16 am
Oops, you are right…I meant stoplight at Redwood and Splitrock….
The anger mgmt issue is because no matter what the topic seems to be, some indivuals turn it into an ambulance issue. Those individuals need some mechanism to learn to deal with their anger regarding the ambulance issue.
This blog issue is about truck traffic on Redwood. It is NOT about the GOB club, alcohol consumption at Sneakers, the BPD, or the ambulance issue. There are other blog sites for those issues.
January 9th, 2008 at 10:29 am
To #8….All I meant was that every issue in this town that is decided on by the city council is botched in some way or another. At least that is what I have seen since following city government the past few years. I have been a life long resident of this wonderful community. The last time I checked nobody has ever been against sacrificing anything for the safety of our children. This should continue and making a truck route that is strictly enforced will add to that safety. If the trucking companies do not like the route, then maybe they should pay for our roads in town. I completely understand that companies need to make deliveries, and there are ways to make that work. Truck routes are designed for a reason, and they need to be enforced. Any law abiding, safe driving trucker will agree with this philosophy. Just my opinion……
January 9th, 2008 at 10:46 am
Just curious, much nicer post. Thanks for keeping it on topic. I am confused though, are you for keeping Redwood a truck route or creating a new truck route?
You should considering running for city council if you are so unhappy with what they do.
January 9th, 2008 at 4:16 pm
No. 5 - to answer your question, the council has contacted the DOT in Pierre to request a traffic study on the busy Redwood-Splitrock intersection. The Challenger did a story on this about a month or two ago. Had you read it, you would know this study is in the works, but that it could take years - yes years - for an actual traffic light to be put up. Since Splitrock is a state highway, the state leaders are the ones to decide if or if not Brandon gets a traffic light there. Write your legislators - this is one of those issues they need to be informed of.
January 9th, 2008 at 4:27 pm
Isn’t this issue a little deeper than just the truck traffic on Redwood with Blachowske Truckline business being located on that street? How long have they been there? And are you going to make them move with a no trucking ordinance on that street? All I am saying is that we need to look at all those concerned and how are they going to be effected before any rash decisions are made. Maybe a greatly reduced speed limit say 15 or 10 mph with good enforcement is need rather than a complete ban.
January 9th, 2008 at 4:37 pm
#11, if I understand correctly the state bases their decision on accident count at an intersection? So it could take several years for enough accidents to accrue before they put up a light that could have prevented accidents in the first place? Sounds like typical Pierre wisdom. BTW, how long have they been studying to put turn arrows at Holly and Splitrock?
January 9th, 2008 at 5:19 pm
#11 Yes I did read the newspaper article. Re-read my post again. I said I agree with poster #3 that a stoplight was needed.
The planning/requesting to the State should have been done YEARS AGO for the stoplight. That intersection has been a problem/issue since Redwood was paved. How long ago was that? I am certain it has been several years.
One positive note on planning in Brandon. Many of the problems Brandon is dealing with now are a result of poor planning 10-15 years ago. Since the city hired Dave Swier a few years back things are so much better. He brought so many good ideas and is pleasant to work with. A definite asset to Brandon.
**Yes, that was definately off topic, but worth mentioning!
January 9th, 2008 at 5:27 pm
I live just off of Redwood and Sioux Blvd. We don’t want the trucks here either. If the trucks are stopped from the other streets why not stop them from Redwood. We now have a Daycare on a dangerous corner and more apartments going up. I will be at the meetings until this is resolved and anyone wanting to stop the trucks on Redwood should also be there. Anyone want to hear the Jake-Brakes at early hours of the morning? Want to get all the droppings that spill out of the cattle trucks. Not me, see you there?
January 9th, 2008 at 6:06 pm
jake braking in city limits is illegal.
January 9th, 2008 at 6:41 pm
GOB-Good of Brandon.
January 9th, 2008 at 7:54 pm
There is a daycare on that road and Hoovers ata and Dynamic and thats alot of danger with Drucks and all the trafic that enters and exits along that road tooo dangerious to risk it, Brandon - remember - SLOW DOWN WE LOVE OUR CHILDREN
January 10th, 2008 at 7:56 am
The issue of the trucks going through Brandon will not effect any businesses that need the use of 18 wheelers to conduct there business. The ordinance is only to stop those trucks that use the city streets to drive through the town with no intent on stopping for the purpose of conducting business.
The thought is that the trucks are using the Brandon roads in order to miss the weight station on Interstate 90 by driving on the roads that parraallel to the south. This constant weight that is not needed does shorten the life of our streets.
Traffic in side the city for those businesses that need product delivered by truck will still occur.
January 10th, 2008 at 9:28 am
I am all for banning thru traffic on Redwood Boulevard, but truth be told how many trucks actually need to use Redwood as a thruway. It seems to me that the Cattle Trucks or Construction Trucks or any other Truck that wants to avoid the Scale can us I90 instead of Redwood. As for heading eastbound, they can us I90 then Hwy 11. Other than shorter distances to Morrells, I don’t see the advantages of using Redwood. As for the businesses that are already on Redwood, there trucks can enter and exit from Hwy 11 (Split Rock) as before as they were there first. It’s like moving to the country near a farm and complain about the smell, but thats for another day.
January 10th, 2008 at 1:20 pm
How confusing is it to have one side of Redwood business & the other side residential? How long will it take for those residents to start complaining? The best thing that Brandon can do in the meantime is to let the word get out that we will not allow anything over-weight, excessive speed, jake-braking (yes, its illegal — but still done). Maybe set some mobile check stations, if that is at all possible…
January 10th, 2008 at 1:33 pm
Would there be a way to a way to connect the rest of the industrial park to Blachowske Trucking? That way none of their trucks would need to use Redwood and everybody would be happy and safe. Otherwise the BPD should continue to enforce the speed limit and the road will be safe for everyone in the neighborhood……
January 10th, 2008 at 2:18 pm
Nice thinking #22! Good idea!
January 10th, 2008 at 3:17 pm
It’s not Blachowske trucks I see running through Brandon it’s Myrl and Roys and livestock semi’s.
January 10th, 2008 at 3:59 pm
In all honesty, the biggest abusers to me are the cattle and hog transport trucks, which are going to the livestock sales and Morells. I think the Mryl and Roys trucks also as they head north to the new Quarry north of Corson.
These are the vehicles that are using our streets, with excessive weight which damages our streets.
I do agree that they should be routed around our city, if it’s a truck with business to conduct in our city, WELCOME.
January 11th, 2008 at 10:20 am
The quarry north of Corson is owned by Concrete Materials, so the Myrl & Roy trucks are not going there. Myrl & Roy’s Paving has a Quarry near Highway 42 and 11 near Rowena and a Plant on Rice Street.
January 11th, 2008 at 1:33 pm
To clarify, the speed limit on Redwood Blvd. is only for East Redwood, which means Redwood on the east side of Splitrock Blvd.,not all the way from Sioux to Splitrock. There are many residences on East Redwood.
January 11th, 2008 at 2:11 pm
We should set up a checkpoint at each entry into Brandon and make sure people are coming into Brandon to conduct business or visit. They should have to fill out a waiver that they are not just passing through. We only want people that have a reason to be here in town. No more of these people from places like Hills and Valley driving through.(nothing against you if are from there) That will eventually wear down our streets and cause unnecessary repairs. They should take the interstate or have to drive through some other town that doesnt have laws against using their roads. SERIOUSLY. Roads are for driving on. If people could just slow down a little we could get along. Stop whining. Come visit our town. Grab a drink at the gas station. Support us by buying your food and gas and McDonalds.
January 11th, 2008 at 2:39 pm
BBB#28-Just wondering which area of town you live in. Maybe we can divert the hog and cattle trucks through your neighborhood and see how it makes you feel? Let your kids, if you have any, play Russian Roulette with the nasty stuff that leaks from these semi’s? They can just as easy go to I-90 to Timberline or Rice Street. NO TRUCKS ON REDWOOD!
January 11th, 2008 at 5:13 pm
Sioux Blvd is my back yard so i have seen my fair share of traffic and trucks. They are constantly building houses out here and there are always trucks driving past. My bigger concern is people in cars driving too fast past the house. My three year old can hear a truck coming a mile away, he wouldnt have a chance with a sports car whipping around our corner.
January 11th, 2008 at 6:01 pm
Sweet so you are saying you would not like a semi or two to coming rolling through all hours of the night?
NO TRUCKS ON REDWOOD!
January 11th, 2008 at 6:28 pm
This is slightly off topic but may help some of us that find ourselves driving too fast on certain roads….A no-brainer I’ll admit, but a suggestion worth mentioning.
I always found myself driving too fast on Redwood as well as Sioux. A friend suggested to just set the cruise control. Easy and effective. I also set the cruise on on Rice Street while in the 45 MPH - easy to speed there as well.
Yep, a no-brainer. Wish I could say I thought of it myself…..
January 13th, 2008 at 9:49 am
Yep, They Walk Among Us!
January 13th, 2008 at 11:43 am
#33 You don’t really need to be so “snippety”. You are the one in post #18 that requested people to “SLOW DOWN WE LOVE OUR CHILDREN”. I was just trying to help…..
January 13th, 2008 at 6:05 pm
Wrong there #34. I just get a bang out of people that blog that don’t have a clue what is really going on. They come up with some strange things to say, note even close to what is fact.
FACT: The council is looking at making all primary streets, except Splitrock, No Thru Trucks. Splitrock is a State Highway and any truck may use it.
Delivery trucks going to their home business destination, and trucks that are going to a residential address, a business for a pick up or a delivery may travel on any street in town.
The ones going Thru town would be restricted to Splitrock only, if they council approves this.
If they (the council) makes a truck route, it would go from Redwood (at Splitrock) to Sioux and south to Holly, then west on Holly. Either way (in or out of town) Thru trucks could go that way at the posted speed limit.
If you haven’t noticed, trucks have been going that way since the start of the construction on Holly with little notice. Now, some are up in arms about it.
Redwood and Splitrock now qualifies for a traffic signal. It is going to the DOT appropriations for funding. There is a waiting list and they prioritize these and fund the ones that have high priority with the money available.
FYI
January 13th, 2008 at 7:10 pm
What am I wrong about # 35?
I am quite aware of most the “facts” that you listed above. Nicely presented by the way….
I hadn’t heard the stoplight at Splitrock/Redwood is a for sure thing. I understood it to be in “studying” phase. Sure would be nice though? It is long overdue!
January 14th, 2008 at 8:30 am
#36 About being the #18 post.
January 14th, 2008 at 8:57 am
I’ve got an idea. Lets drop the speed limit on the highway because some of the people that live on farms have children. Slow Down.
January 14th, 2008 at 1:15 pm
#38 BBB your just plain stupid! Put your house on the highway and it may be a great idea!
January 14th, 2008 at 1:15 pm
The streets and roads are public right of ways. It is the parents responsibility to keep children out of that right of way.
Too many parents are in the house watching TV or on the internet bloging and not out with their children.
January 14th, 2008 at 2:10 pm
It astounds me that we are talking public saftey as a reason to eliminate truck traffic on Redwood. A better idea to install sidewalks met with a resounding thud.
January 14th, 2008 at 3:10 pm
#39 CONCERNED, if you can’t pick up on the sarcasm you might want to watch who you are calling stupid. I sure havent attacked you with any personal comments, but I could. #40 is about the only realistic one on here. Get out and keep your kids off the street and we wont have to worry.
January 14th, 2008 at 9:12 pm
It’s not the kids that are destroying the streets but all the unnecessary TRUCK traffic that travels on them bypassing the scales. But it is the taxpayers in this fine community that are paying for the same streets the truckers are destroying! They are just passing through not spending any of their hard earned money in this town. If they are they are going to the Coffee Cup and buying fuel which is just fine then they can go 1 more block to I-90 and we would not have a problem. Sit on Splitrock on a Friday night and just watch the large amount of trucks that come off of E. Aspen from Valley? Maybe we need to contact the highway patrol and get them set up on E. Aspen and stop / fine a few then maybe they would get the hint? Oh sorry the highway patrol is under a budget cut also.
January 15th, 2008 at 10:03 am
Maybe a silly question but how much wear and tear does the increasing “regular” traffic have on these roads. Granted they are built for cars but as Brandon grows I would imagine more traffic wears them down faster as well. Should we re-route some traffic so only a certain amount of cars can drive on these roads per day? Think about it before you freak out and get defensive
January 15th, 2008 at 12:36 pm
WEIGHT destroyes the streets, how hard is that to figure out? Over time the regular traffic does wear out the streets but not as fast as a overloaded truck.
January 15th, 2008 at 1:08 pm
#44 BBB, PLEASE TAKE IN CONSIDERATION THAT THE WEIGHT OF A NORMAL PASSENGER VEHICLE ONLY WEIGHS A MAX. OF 5700-lbs. - THEN A LOADED SEMI WEIGHS ” 80,000 ” lbs. AND WHERE THE MOST DAMAGE IS DONE IS WHEN THOSE TRUCKS MAKE THE TURNS AND YOU HAVE ALL THAT WEIGHT ON EIGHT TIRES GOING AROUND THAT CORNER. THAT IS ALOT OF PRESSURE BEING APPLIED TO THE CONCRETE, ASPHALT, OR WHATEVER THAT ROAD IS CONSTRUCTED OF. HOPE THIS GIVES YOU SOME SORT OF IDEA WHAT KIND OF ABUSE THESE ROADS TAKE. JUST SIMPLE INFORMATION..
January 15th, 2008 at 1:12 pm
Thank You #46
January 15th, 2008 at 5:38 pm
I didn’t find much on the internet about trucks and road repairs. I do remember hearing trucks and weather cause most of the interstate highway damage. I did find one piece of info that you can check out for yourself - the reports looked too technical for me.
Cost. One legal 80,000 pound GVW tractor-trailer truck does as much damage to road pavement as 9,600 cars. (Highway Research Board, NAS, 1962).
January 16th, 2008 at 9:11 am
Thank You #48. I have a hard time believing that the roads aren’t getting more abuse from the 500 cars that drive over them daily, rather than the 100 trucks. It might even be a wash, roads are roads. They will wear down and need to be fixed, also like stated above, how about the weather factor. It is cold here, should we try to warm it up somehow.
January 16th, 2008 at 1:52 pm
The one thing that is missing from all of this is that when Redwood & Sioux were built, they were designed for truck traffic. It is thicker mat than the residential streets. Look at south Sioux Blvd. and think of all the cement trucks that have been over that with little damage.
January 16th, 2008 at 4:11 pm
YA , AND THEN TAKE A LOOK AT ASPEN WHERE THE OLD CEMENT PLANT WAS… CEMENT TRUCKS REALLY TORE UP THAT ROAD..
January 16th, 2008 at 9:41 pm
But nothing has been done to that road for 20 years. There is alwasys another side to look at. That road has stood up rather well considering that.
January 17th, 2008 at 4:39 pm
If weight isn’t an issue then why do we have weigh scales? It seems it’s simple physics. Heavier vehicle, more tire and road wear. Heavier human, more joint damage.
January 18th, 2008 at 9:34 am
I’m not sure what physics class that came from, but I don’t see where that fits into this.
Are you assuming that ALL trucks that go on that street are overloaded?
January 18th, 2008 at 2:08 pm
No, I’m saying that semi’s weigh more than cars. Heavier vehicles = more road damage.
January 18th, 2008 at 6:03 pm
If the main concern is semi trucks that are driving through Brandon to avoid the weigh stations, is banning through truck traffic in Brandon the way to stop that?
Are there agencies whose job it is to enforce the weigh stations? If they were more diligent, would Brandon not have the problem in the first place?
January 18th, 2008 at 6:50 pm
So how many trucks would you say are doing this?
I drive Redwood and Sioux at lease twice everyday and I have not seen the hoards of trucks it seems people are referring to.
I have also seen livestock trucks come up Hwy. 11 from Hwy. 42 that come thru Larchwood. There is no scale dodging there.
I think if the real count of trucks was done that are going “THRU”, it may surprise you.
January 18th, 2008 at 7:15 pm
Sit at E. Aspen and S. Splitrock Blvd on a Friday evening. Watch just how many trucks come off the Valley Rd. They do this for a reason they are going around the scales and back to I-90. Us the taxpayers are paying for these roads.
January 18th, 2008 at 7:16 pm
I live on Holly and the real count isn’t surprising. It’s impossible to sit outside and have a conversation during the summer months due to all the large truck traffic. There is a ton of livestock loaded semi’s, side dumps full of broken up concrete, dump trucks and flat bed semi’s. They also exceed the speed limit and jake brake.
In fact, I saw 2 today and I wasn’t outside looking, and that’s WITH the no thru traffic signs posted. And no, he wasn’t delivering, it was an empty flat bed semi.
Just because you drive by that corner for 15 seconds twice a day, doesn’t give an accurate count. I think until you live on one of these streets, you’ll never witness it.
We don’t need all these trucks just passing through because it’s easier for them. The interstate is a mile away.
January 20th, 2008 at 9:26 am
It appears to me that we have two separate issues here, routing and enforcement.
If truck drivers are on posted streets now, that has nothing to do with truck routes. That is an enforcement issue.
If Brandon had no route from Splitrock to the west to Sioux Falls, some of these drivers who obviously do care now, would go through Brandon anyway they wanted.
These truck drivers you have seen on Holly are just pressing their luck and hoping they will not get a ticket. No enforcement, no ticket, no problem.
A few large dollar tickets should send a message. Call the new Police Chief on Monday, and explain this to him.
If you report people breaking the law, get truck line names, license plate numbers, time of day, photos, or any other documentation that you can. If our law enforcement fail to do anything, go your council person or the mayor.
January 20th, 2008 at 4:56 pm
#60, good ideas. I’ll take it to the new chief though, our council is a joke.