"Safer Trucking in Changing Cities," or something Nawbany doesn't talk about at all.

SAFER TRUCKING IN CHANGING CITIES from Fields of Vision on Vimeo.

Meanwhile, the same company currently dumping thousands of dollars each year into Mayor Jeff Gahan's re-election fund, and which was given the contract to gut Speck's plan, design last year's two-way reversion and “keep those trucks moving” (as HWC's Jim Rice once observed) now has been given a second contract to explore whether their first contract was a success.

Is this stand-up comedy?
 
What are the chances that HWC will acknowledge failure? After all, wouldn't we be due a refund if so?

Maybe a better way would be having an IMPARTIAL outside firm perform the speed study -- one actually aware of what traffic calming entails. Then again, Gahan has to desire traffic calming, doesn't he?

And the way Gahan's system works at present, doing business with HWC is good for ... business.

Imagine what we could accomplish is we wanted to accomplish something beyond fattening the campaign finance heifer at every turn.

Let's check on the Democratic Party's point of view.

Yep. Business as usual, on ALL fronts.

On trucking safety.

Now that the extractive trucking lobby has its own anonymous apologist, perhaps we can have that long overdue discussion about what "trucking safety" really means for the rest of us.

Bluegill wins serve.

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It's interesting to hear and read so much sudden concern about trucking safety, particularly regarding oversized loads. The state department of transportation has very clear rules about special permits, restricted hauling hours, the need for escort vehicles, etc., when hauling such loads. It's anecdotal but, in nearly a decade of living and working in Downtown and Midtown New Albany, neither my wife nor I have never seen an escort vehicle and certainly not the state police escort required for extremely large loads. How is that possible if oversized loads are so prevalent for these companies? Are they overstating their case or just ignoring the rules as is? If large loads are happening so frequently, is the City doing anything to enforce those safety rules?

As a corollary, I had a conversation a few days ago with someone who, until very recently, was employed by a New Albany trucking firm. He, too, lamented the Main Street Project, making it very clear that truck traffic had been diverted to other streets, especially oversized loads. He further explained, saying that "all it's going to do is tear up the other streets, because they're not built for that". So, if trucking companies are regularly using and damaging streets not built for their rigors, who pays to repair them? And why are they allowed to use them in the first place?