Lyon County commissioners discussed increasing penalties for commercial truck drivers who use county roads posted as “No Thru Commercial Traffic” during Thursday morning’s action session, saying the current $75 fine does little to discourage violations.
The discussion stemmed from ongoing complaints from residents along Allen, Burlingame and Americus roads, where county officials say through truck traffic has increased, particularly because of highway construction and detours. County Engineer Wayne Scritchfield said his office routinely receives calls from residents concerned about heavy trucks using roads that were not designed for that type of traffic. Undersheriff John Koelsch said the Sheriff’s Office has conducted enforcement efforts but noted deputies face challenges determining whether a commercial vehicle is legitimately making a local delivery or simply using the county roads as a shortcut. “We’ve made several truck stops,” Koelsch said. “The difficulty is making sure that commercial truck drivers aren’t making a delivery off one of those roads.” Officials said recent complaints included trucks hauling agricultural products and heavy equipment through the county, adding unnecessary wear to roads and bridges. Scritchfield said county roads such as Americus, Allen and Burlingame were never intended to carry continuous heavy commercial traffic. “The roads were not constructed with these kinds of loads and this frequency of traffic,” he said. Commissioners discussed replacing the current $75 citation with a county-specific penalty that would provide a greater deterrent. Koelsch said a local trucking company owner told him some states impose fines as high as $1,000 for similar violations, with repeat offenses carrying even higher penalties. County Counselor Molly Priest said the county could explore adopting its own fine structure through a revised resolution rather than relying solely on state traffic statutes.
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